Below is a continuation of an interview with Marina, a refugee from Mariupol. She continues to share what it was like living in a disaster area and sharing what their greatest need is now…food.

From the interview with Marina…

What is your name and where are you from?

My name is Marina and I am from [a city in Ukraine]. We arrived here on April 6.

What happened there?

Disaster happened. The war has begun. At first, we lived on the Left bank, with two children we constantly ran from the house to the basement, and from the basement back home. Then they decided to evacuate us on March 1 to [another Ukrainian city]. On March 2 my husband arrived, and a real scorcher began: we were bombed from the air, and by GRADs, and by tanks; everything around was on fire; there were dead bodies everywhere; there was no water, or gas, it was impossible to go out for water because of the fighting, rockets and mortars were hitting all around. Our children were crying and shaking. Thanks to our Ukrainian military and the food they provided we survived. It continued until March 24-25.

So, you lived in such situation for almost a month?

That’s right. We waited until the close battles were over, then the [opposition] entered for a cleansing operation, then the next day, on the 24th, the DPR entered. We cleared our way through the corpses of the dead civilians, and so we were able to leave.

Have you lost your home…?

We lost everything; we fled in what we were wearing

You have two kids, what age are they?

Ten and three

Is your husband here with you?

Yes

What is the hardest thing for you?

The most difficult is to explain to our children that today we do not have meat, or sweets, warm water, hot tea, especially to the younger one.