How I Evacuated WWII Survivors From the Ukraine-Russia Border

The story of one evacuation of grandparents who never wanted to be evacuated

Ukraine Warzone Newsletter

September 2024

There’s a particular group of people who, despite everything, don’t want to leave. These are the grannies and grandpas who survived World War II, and now, in their 80s and 90s, are faced with the cruel reality of having to leave their homes once again. This is the story of my husband’s grandparents and how we helped them escape the war they thought they'd never see again.

Grandparents are getting their belongings to the car, accompanied by a neighbor. Photo: Oskar Hallgrimsson

The Dire Return of War

In a small apartment in eastern Ukraine, just 40 kilometers from the Russian border, the air raid sirens scream in a painful echo. This time, the sound wasn’t unfamiliar to Grandma Lena and Grandpa Zhenya. Born in 1940, they grew up amidst the devastation of Nazi bombings. History, it seems, has a grim way of repeating itself.

Now, in their 80s, they found themselves in Shostka, a small town in the Sumy region with deep military significance. They had lived here for the past ten years, right across the street from one of the largest gunpowder factories in the former Soviet Union. As fate would have it, a Russian full-scale invasion brought this factory back into focus, making their quiet retirement home a target.

Shostka city is in the center of the map. Source: DeepState

One night, the sirens wailed, warning of an incoming missile. A rocket hit the gunpowder factory. The blast wave shattered their balcony and windows. The hallway where they took refuge saved their lives. The next morning, they made a call that changed everything: “We’re ready to evacuate.”