Ukraine war: First evacuees to leave Mariupol steel plant arrive safely after ordeal
- Some civilian evacuees reached Zaporizhzhia from Russian occupied territory on Monday morning after making their own way
- One convoy of civilians was delayed as buses had not reached the agreed pickup point as the city council urged the evacuees to remain in place
The first evacuees from the ruins of Mariupol’s Azovstal steel works were due to arrive in the Ukrainian-controlled city of Zaporizhzhia later on Monday after weeks of cowering from Russian shelling in underground bunkers.
The sprawling industrial complex in the Sea of Azov port city that has been devastated by weeks of Russian shelling has been a refuge for both civilians and Ukrainian troops as Moscow claimed control of Mariupol.
The United Nations and International Committee of the Red Cross began an operation coordinated with Ukraine and Russia on April 29 to bring out women, children and the elderly from the steel works.
Some civilian evacuees reached Zaporizhzhia from Russian occupied territory on Monday morning after making their own way.
One of them, Natalya Tsyntomirska, arrived in a funeral service van. She said she had left the devastation of Mariupol some time ago and been hiding in a basement in a nearby village.
“Our house is completely destroyed. We had a two-storey building, it’s not there anymore. It burned to the ground,” she said.