The realities of Vovchansk: from hope for life to forced evacuation
On February 24, 2022, Vovchansk became one of the first cities to be under occupation, because it is located less than 10 km from the border with Russia.
Russian troops quickly took control of the city, establishing their own order and starting certain repressions against the local population. The occupation lasted more than half a year, bringing grief and hardship to the city’s residents.
However, September 11, 2022 became a day of hope and joy for Vovchansk, because during the successful counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region, the city was liberated from the occupiers. The Ukrainian military was able to regain control over it and the residents of Vovchansk returned home, having received the hope of starting life anew on their territory.
Unfortunately, peace for Vovchansk was short-lived, because in May 2024, as a result of another Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region, Russian troops entered the city again. This time, however, fierce urban fighting ensued, resulting in significant destruction, death, and great danger. The city, which had just begun to recover from the previous occupation, was again at the center of hostilities, and its inhabitants were forced to hide in basements and bomb shelters, risking their lives.
Currently, the situation in Vovchansk has become even more complicated, despite the fact that the Ukrainian military continues to fight for the city. The history of this small border town is another example of the untold misery that befell its inhabitants. They lived here for generations, but were forced to say goodbye to their homes and leave to save their own lives.
During the evacuations from Vovchansk, the journalists of IA “FAKT” together with other mass media managed to talk with local residents, who were taken away from the city by volunteers almost in the line of fire.
Residents of Vovchansk did not want to leave their homes and farms until the last, so they did not want to leave when it could be done more or less safely. However, later, when the fighting in the city escalated, they were left without communication, food and medicine. They were mostly elderly, sick people. They began to expect help, but for some time they did not receive it. Later, volunteers came for them, risking their lives. People gathered only the most necessary things, because there were not enough seats in the volunteers’ cars.
Looking into the eyes of the residents of Vovchansk, one could see only tears from the weight of the loss of everything they had gained during their lives, fear of shelling and an unknown future. For many of them, the decision to leave what was once a symbol of their lives and start all over again in search of safety was a very difficult one, and was only possible after serious talks by volunteers about the risks of staying put.
The road that leads these people to safety is filled not only with physical obstacles, but also with emotional trials. And since today all these people have to leave their past lives for salvation, we must remember them, support them in this difficult moment and then help restore what was lost and destroyed.
