The story of Maryna Holovnova, who managed to evacuate from Mariupol. #UkraineWorldTestimony 1/12 
On March 8, Mariupol no longer had electricity, heating, communications, gas, or local government officials remaining representatives of local authorities (with a handful of very brave exceptions). 2/12
Maryna Holovnova and her family slept in a windowless room and hoped that the two walls around them would protect them from Russian shells. To be more precise, they almost did not sleep at all, because they could hardly breathe from the fear and cold. 3/12
From the way, the shock waves shook the walls & furniture in their apartment & the hum of ✈️ over the city. "The nights were the scariest. When I finally saw the light through the doorway, it became a little easier - it meant we had survived until morning," said Maryna. 4/12
After waking up the morning of March 8, Maryna spent 40 minutes trying to boil a pot of water on scrap wood near the door to her apartment building. It was -8℃ outside and snowing. 5/12
At 8 am, as usual, Maryna's family went to the since-destroyed Mariupol Drama Theater to see their friends and learn at least some news. It was quite close, but on the way they had to take cover several times due to the threat of shelling. 6/12
The sirens in Mariupol were never turned on. Maryna heard them for the first time when she reached Zaporizhzhia on March 17. "In Mariupol, we learned about the threat of an air raid from the sound of the Russian warplanes themselves. 7/12
We hid and listened for the 1st bomb to fall, then the 2nd, cause the bombers would carry 2 of them. Then we waited a few more min. in case the ✈️ wasn't alone. If it was quiet, it was possible to go out & continue to do business. Even children knew this routine,"Maryna said.8/12
Near the drama theater, people stood for hours in the cold, waiting for information: what is happening in the country and in the city, and whether there will be a green evacuation corridor today or tomorrow. 9/12
In the afternoon, soldiers came to the theater and brought diapers, blankets, and cookies to the children. As always, they cheerfully told people about the situation on the front line: "We'll beat them back soon, we are doing everything so that you all could leave." 10/12
Later, the police also came to the Theater. A man asked one of them what he should do with his neighbor’s dead body. She had gone out into her🏠 courtyard to warm up food when a shell fell nearby & tore her to pieces. He had put her remains in a bag & took them to a garage. 11/12
Read the full story on our website ➡️ ukraineworld.org/articles/stori… 12/12
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