Thread by @billconacher

I have been asked to tell what happened to my family my friends from my apartment building and myself in Mariupol. First off I want everyone to know that the real Ukrainians I know are kind, generous and brave! They deserve all the help you can give!

I am a Canadian married to a woman from Mariupol, we have a teen daughter and had a good life in Mariupol before the war. In November of last year I was detained by the Ukrainian SBU,which is the secret police. I was held for 24 hours questioned and threatened.

One of my interrogators was a man with a British accent who is in the news today. The last time I saw him he placed a gun on the table and said if I caused any trouble he and his friends would visit me and my family and eliminate any problem!

One the first day of the war the apartment building next to ours was attack by mortars and set on fire! There was no question who did it as there was no Russian or DPR forces within 50km of Mariupol. The next day my apartment was attack and completely destroyed.

We and four other families lost everything that day, one of the elderly resident burned alive! We were forced to move to the basement for shelter and protection. Systematiclly over the next 10 days the Nazi's drove everyone into the basements. They used us as human shields.

We lost gas, power and water on the first day so we had to build a fire to heat water and cook. Each morning we would collect fire wood, some days we would not be attack but never 2 days in a row.

When we were attack it was by mortars as soon as we were seen outside. This kept us in the basement so they didn't have to pay to much attention to there shields. Also it kept us from seeing fortifications the Azov Nazi's where building in between apartment buildings

We did not get any supplies, water medicine from the Ukrainians but they did loot the apartments that still were not destroyed. Everyday the Nazi's came to make sure we were still there. Threatening to shot anyone that tried to get away!

On the tenth morning a woman named Oxsana and three others, myself included went outside to start the fire. As we collected fire wood there was a mortar attack and Oxsana was hit in the left calf. This wound tore her calf apart, I was the only one that had first aid.

For the next 10 I took care of her wounds. She is the bravest person I will ever know! Only time I heard her scream or cry was when she was hit. When I came to dress her wound she never complained, never cried and always thanked me for my help.

For 5 weeks all of us did not know if death would visit us. Would we get killed by a mortar, a shell or a Nazi that just wanted to kill a subhuman russian, that's what they believe! I could tell you more, I have so much in my mind it's hard to keep straight.