‘It is scary’

Surrounded by strangers in a bomb shelter deep underground in Kharkiv, Ukraine, a 21-year-old Jamaican medical student desperately wants an end to Russia’s invasion of the Eastern European nation that is clinging relentlessly to its independence.

The student, one of 28 who remained in the country after months of aggression from Moscow that intensified in recent weeks, opted not to travel with the group in search of transportation which would take them across the border and into Poland.

The Jamaican Government said yesterday that it had secured entry into Poland for the Jamaican students, 23 of whom, up to press time, were en route to the Polish border.

Three students travelling from L’viv and one travelling from Kyiv are still awaiting transportation to leave for that border.

In an interview with The Gleaner on Friday, the student, who asked not to be identified out of fear for her safety, said remaining was the right thing to do as Russian forces invaded several cities, bombing key infrastructure and killing dozens in a lopsided war.

Her Jamaican counterparts, who had made it safely to the train station, were unable to board the first train after thousands of stranded people stormed carts, filling all nine in minutes.

A round of explosions from airstrikes in the distance further hampered the group’s efforts, forcing the students to seek temporary shelter though hours later they managed to board another that was bound for the country’s western border with Poland.

“It is scary. It is a very scary situation,” the student said, admitting that she has been forced to learn Russian and Ukrainian in order to communicate with her sheltermates.

The Jamaican student said she has been adopted by a Ukrainian couple whose son is familiar with the English language, removing a major hurdle in her fight for survival.

“I feel like a fish out of water but I’m getting some things. I sometimes understand what they’re saying. I just can’t reply to them. I’m starting to understand, it’s just that the reply is taking a little longer,” said the student who arrived in the country December 2021.

In a brief video of one of the rooms in the shelter which was seen by The Gleaner, several people were chatting with each other in what appears to be a tight space.

A low distressed-looking roof paralleled by a pipe on one side is supported by green concrete walls sparsely decorated with graffiti.

The student said the food supply is normal as well as there is an abundance of water, but communication remains intermittent.

Occupants sometimes leave for two hours maximum to stretch their legs above ground before descending a significant number of stairs back into the bunker.

“I try to stay calm and do my normal stuff like read on the Internet. I try not to think much about the situation but it’s hard not to keep myself updated on what is going on. There isn’t much to do really.

The service is not stable. So sometimes we’re just sitting down and looking,” she told The Gleaner, noting that Friday was less intense than Thursday when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in the former satellite state.

“My body is in that state where it’s not allowing me to fall asleep. I don’t want any food. I haven’t been eating much. I’m just drinking water. I just can’t shut down. I’ll get to that point and then every sound I hear, I get right back up.”

She said on Friday, the sounds of explosions had subsided with only one major banger sounding off in the distance.

She said there have been tremors, though she was not able to determine the cause.

“They (Russian troops) are not fully in my area right now. They are focused on the capital. That is what they are after,” she theorised.

Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, came under heavy air attack on Friday as Russian troops entered, putting the Government in its cross hairs, international media have reported.

A Russian missile is said to have struck a multi-storey residential building in the capital’s southeastern district of Pozniaky, injuring three people, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

“For me it was like these things happen in these countries, but the shock was waking up on a regular day and instead of looking for breakfast, I’m looking out for bombs. That is what really struck me,” she said.

Already burdened by her reality, she said she has chosen to ignore the local furore about her and her counterparts’ decision to remain in the unstable country.

“I don’t think it’s going to do anything for me right now. It doesn’t do much for any of us here right now. So I see it and I leave it,” she said, adding that as soon as it is safe, she and her mother, who has been in constant communication, will plot the way forward.

“I’ll be fine. We’ll be fine.”