Children injured and children’s institutions damaged as a result of the strike on the Dnieper (video)
There is a war going on in Ukraine, and almost every day children become its victims. They die or are injured not on the battlefield, but in homes, schools, kindergartens, and playgrounds. Their childhood passes to the sound of sirens, in the shadow of destruction, under the weight of the experienced fear. The war, which has been going on for the third year, deprives children of a sense of security, turns everyday life into a field of survival. This is what happened on June 24 in Dnipro, when a missile attack by Russian troops hit a peaceful city and once again affected children’s spaces.
Dnipro shelling: in the corridors of the children’s center and under the chairs
One of the rockets damaged the children and youth development center, where 12 groups work. There aren’t many visitors here in the summer, but at the time of the attack, there were several female workers in the building, a grandmother with her grandson, and the leader of the modeling and design club with her assistant. They had just seen the message about the ballistic threat and went into the corridor – that’s where the explosions started.
Everyone just fell to the floor. The child, who is approximately six years old, screamed in panic: “We are going to die now.” The boy was trembling, in a state of severe stress, the adults tried to calm him down, made him drink tea. According to Victoria and Alyona, at least 37 windows were broken in the room.
Another blow is nearby: the kindergarten is under threat
At the same time as the development center, one of the kindergartens was damaged. His teachers said that some of the children were playing in the yard, others were preparing for classes. After the air alarm signal, the workers promptly took everyone to the basement shelter – there were nine children aged 5-6 and ten adults in the facility. As soon as the children hid, explosions rang out.
“It was very scary. We reassured the children, tried to console them. Even when there was a setback, they didn’t leave immediately.” — told teacher Natalya.
Another employee, Lyudmila, recalls that the children were very scared, some were crying. She immediately informed the parents that the children were in the shelter and asked to pick them up after the alarm. Almost all the windows in the facility were also broken, and now it has been switched to a remote form of work.
Consequences of the attack: children on the lists of wounded
A rocket attack on the Dnipro on June 24 killed at least 20 people and injured almost 300. Medical assistance was provided to 18 children. In addition to houses, school and preschool institutions, a vocational school, a music school, and medical institutions were affected. The Odesa-Zaporizhia passenger train, which was heading to Dnipro and was carrying children, was also damaged. Among the injured are two teenagers: a 13-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy, who were hospitalized with moderate injuries.
Mayor of Dnipro Boris Filatov reported, that as a result of the strike, the buildings of 19 schools, 10 kindergartens, as well as a vocational school and a music school were damaged.
These events are not an exception, but an alarming commonplace. Ukrainian children grow up in a reality where, instead of a safe childhood, there are shelters, ruins and screams of fear. Those who survive physically suffer deep psychological trauma that lasts a lifetime. With each attack, war not only destroys buildings, it also steals childhood — forever.
