Ukrainians Say They Returned from Hell After Escaping Occupied Oleshky

Table of Contents

• You might want to know
• Life and escape from Oleshky
• Key insights table
• Afterwards

You might want to know

• Why did residents of Oleshky wait so long before attempting to leave?
• What challenges await evacuees now that they have reached northern Ukraine?

Life and escape from Oleshky

Warning: This story contains graphic content.

Olha has a single word for life in the front-line city of Oleshky over the past few years: “Horror.” Her husband, Viacheslav, described their return to Ukrainian-controlled territory in even more stark terms. “We came back from hell,” he said as the couple stepped off a coach in Chernihiv, accompanied by their immediate family and their dog.

They were among hundreds of people evacuated from Russian-occupied Oleshky, crossing into northern Ukraine through Belarus on Saturday. The journey brought some residents together with loved ones they had not seen for years. For many, the arrival was not only a chance to escape danger but also an emotional reunion after a prolonged separation and months or years of uncertainty.

Oleshky was seized by Russian forces in the first few days of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Its location has left the city in an especially difficult position: the Dnipro River lies on one side, while Russian forces control the other. As fighting continued and the area became more dangerous, the people still living there faced growing risks in their homes and on the routes out.

Olha and Viacheslav had lived in Oleshky with their son and daughter, both in their 30s. Even as shelling intensified, leaving was not an uncomplicated choice. The family feared that escape routes might be mined or targeted by drones, making an attempt to get out potentially more dangerous than staying. Their experience illustrates the painful calculations civilians can face in a besieged or occupied area: remaining means enduring shortages and attacks, while fleeing can expose people to mines, bombardment, and other threats.

Food was also becoming increasingly difficult to find. Earlier this month, as supplies dwindled, Olha and Viacheslav tried to cross minefields in search of something to eat. Olha told the BBC that people were stepping on mines, dying, and suffering life-changing injuries simply in an effort to survive. Residents who were too frightened to leave their homes had reportedly resorted to cooking weeds from their gardens. These accounts show how severe the shortages had become and how ordinary tasks, such as finding food, could turn into life-threatening journeys.

“We saw that the situation wasn’t getting any better, so we realised we had to get out,” Olha said. The chance to leave arrived earlier this week after a humanitarian ceasefire, brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump, took effect in the Kherson region. The arrangement created a brief period of calm in an area that had experienced years of danger and gave residents of Oleshky an opportunity to evacuate.

Up to 6,000 people, including 200 children, were believed to remain in Oleshky and its surrounding areas. Of that number, 1,700 were in the city itself. Residents were given a four-hour window on Friday to leave. A convoy of 25 buses was brought in, with capacity for up to 750 evacuees. Ambulances were also available to transport people with limited mobility.

The evacuation required a long and complicated journey. After travelling through Russian-occupied territory to southern Russia, the evacuees flew to Belarus. From there, they continued by bus to a military facility in Chernihiv, arriving on Saturday. On the tarmac, where people were processed before continuing to their next destinations, the physical toll of the journey was clear. Some elderly residents were so weak that they had to be carried on stretchers.

For families waiting in Ukraine, the arrival brought relief and intense emotion. Mykhailo Palii’s daughters, Dasha and Anya, had thought they might never see him again. When he arrived, they ran across the tarmac, screaming and crying. Their embrace captured the significance of a reunion after years of separation and fear.

Palii offered a glimpse into the conditions he had endured, while explaining that he had kept much of the story from his family to spare them worry. “A hole was blown into the bathroom,” he said. “There were drone attacks and missile strikes. It happened, but I didn’t tell them about it because I knew they would worry.” His account suggests that even after reaching safety, evacuees and their relatives may still be coming to terms with the full extent of what happened during the occupation.

Tetiana and Volodymyr arrived carrying a cat. They said their home had burned down three years ago, and that they had since been living in an abandoned house belonging to a neighbour. For them, the decision to leave as soon as it was safe was straightforward. Tetiana said they had little to regret about leaving: they had no relatives in Oleshky, and their married children did not live with them in the city.

Yet escape does not erase concern for those who remain. Olha said many people were still in Oleshky, living in the same harsh conditions. The evacuation offered a route out for those able to take it, but it did not resolve the danger facing residents who could not or did not leave. Their circumstances underline the limits of a temporary ceasefire: a short window can enable a rescue, but those left behind may continue to face shortages, attacks, and uncertainty.

Those who have reached Chernihiv must now consider where to go and how to begin rebuilding their lives. The journey from Oleshky has brought them away from immediate danger, but it has also left them with practical questions about housing, work, family support, and the possibility of a stable future. Some will need time to recover from the physical and emotional strain of the evacuation; others will have to find ways to support relatives and establish themselves in unfamiliar surroundings.

Palii said he would look for work so he could provide for his family. He was willing to take on a wide range of jobs, including digging, hoeing, planting, building, and even demolition work. His words reflect both determination and the immediate economic challenges facing people who have lost homes, routines, and access to their former livelihoods.

Olha said that she and her family have no relatives elsewhere in Ukraine. They plan to stay with acquaintances for an extended period as they try to get back on their feet. Despite the uncertainty, she expressed confidence in their ability to adapt: “If we managed to survive in hell, we’ll survive here too.” Their story is one of survival, but also of a long transition from escape to rebuilding—and of the residents still waiting for a chance to leave.

Key insights table

Afterwards...

The evacuation has given hundreds of residents a chance to leave immediate danger, but it is only one step toward security. Many will need to rebuild their lives without homes, familiar routines, or nearby relatives, while others remain in Oleshky under dangerous conditions. The days ahead will depend on whether evacuees can find stable shelter and work, and whether further safe opportunities become available for people still waiting to get out. For Olha and her family, survival has already required extraordinary endurance; now they face the task of turning that endurance into a new beginning.