Escape from Irpin

TVN | 28min
Postproduction script

 

00:00:00,000 VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT

00:00:01,680 VO: This is Irpin, a small town on the outskirts of Kyiv. Russian artillery is shelling residential neighborhoods. A crowd of terrified refugees flees the town towards Kyiv.

00:00:16,160 Woman: We walked between tanks, between soldiers, foreign soldiers. It was horrible.

00:00:24,480 VO: Ukrainian defenders have blown up the bridge to stop Russian armored columns. Families with children, wounded, elderly and sick people have to force their way through the ruins. The Russians begin shelling the crossing.

00:00:48,640 Person: Shit!

00:00:56,920 FLEEING IRPIN

00:01:08,360 VO: We are leaving Kyiv in the northwest direction. The towns ahead have been under attack since the first days. Hostomel, Bucha and Irpin are under intense shelling every day. On the road to Irpin, we see a column of city buses.

00:01:34,240 Reporter: Anna, what are these buses for?

00:01:39,800 Anna: I'm not sure, but it's likely that they are Irpin evacuation buses.

00:01:49,040 VO: It's no longer possible to enter Irpin's center. Buses stop in Romanovka, at the city border.

00:01:57,800 Man: If someone hasn't made it on time, another bus will come soon. Everything is organized. Families are together?

00:02:08,560 VO: Among the civilians, we meet a unit retreating from the front line.

00:02:14,000 Soldier: There are many orcs, Russians. They are getting a lot of military equipment. Our artillery can't attack because there are civilian buildings. There's no shelter, the residents gathered in a hangar. At any moment a shell can fall there and the women will die. There are only women there.

00:02:35,240 Man: - How many? Soldier: - Twenty. Twenty women, encircled.

00:02:41,720 Soldier: We need to go. The two white Fiats are ours. Is everyone here? Irpin is about to fall. Please, close the sky. People are dying up there. People are starting to fight over bread. They don't have food. The orcs do not let us deliver food there. Every car heading in that direction is shot at.

00:03:13,720 VO: We head towards the city. Explosions are heard from the center. We keep passing people on the run. They are mainly women with children, the elderly and the sick.

00:03:26,880 Child: Hi! Glory to Ukraine. Glory to the heroes!

00:03:31,600 Reporter: How are you?

00:03:33,240 Mother: I don't know. It's a shock.

00:03:35,800 Reporter: Hang in there. Where are you headed?

00:03:39,040 Mother: We want to go to Moldova. But we don't know how to get there.

00:03:46,160 Reporter: Buses are waiting for you.

00:03:49,800 Mother: Tell them to wait. I can't go fast with the kids.

00:03:52,840 Reporter: - They'll wait. Don't worry. Mother: - Thank you.

00:03:57,360 VO: Smoke from burning skyscrapers rises over the city.

00:04:04,480 Woman: I'm a long way from the truck. I'm still standing... I'll keep walking. There. There, in a moment.

00:04:25,000 Man: Let's go somewhere further away. We'll wait there.

00:04:31,520 VO: To block the march of Russian armored columns, the Ukrainians blew up a bridge on the route from Irpin to Kyiv. It is now a dangerous crossing, full of traps.

00:04:45,920 Man: There is a free car here.

00:04:56,840 Reporter: What's going on there?

00:04:59,840 Soldier to reporter: Come join us, brothers Poles, because you will be next.

00:05:04,560 People shouting: -Faster, faster!

-Bring the child here.

-Through the woods.

-It's fine.

-We told everyone to hold their fire.

-Go through the woods to the new route.

-We are on the new route!

-We are waiting for you. Raise your hands at each checkpoint.

00:05:25,160 VO: Soldiers are covering the fleeing civilians. They are prepared to repel Russian armored vehicles. Residents abandoned their cars in front of the collapsed bridge. For many, their car was their source of income. Unexpectedly, a minibus comes from the town. The driver drops off the women and kids and turns back to get more refugees. We decide to go with him.

00:05:59,120 Reporter: - Where are you headed? Driver: - To Irpin.

00:06:02,480 Reporter: Aren't you afraid?

00:06:08,280 Sanya: I served in the Ukrainian army.

00:06:17,520 Reporter: All right, what's your name?

00:06:21,040 Sanya: Sanya, pseudonym "Bus."

00:06:24,120 Reporter: Sanya, are you the biggest and craziest in Irpin?

00:06:27,880 Sanya: I probably am. I definitely have the biggest bus.

00:06:31,960 Reporter: What do you do now?

00:06:34,120 Sanya: I evacuate people from Irpin. Irpin, Bucha, Hostomel, wherever I can get to.

00:06:41,240 Reporter: But Russian tanks are headed there.

00:06:43,560 Sanya: They surely are. Those whom I have just dropped off...When I came for them, two shells fell 100 feet from me.

00:06:57,400 Reporter: - Really? Sanya: - Yeah.

00:06:59,480 Reporter: - Are you from Irpin? Sanya: - No, from Vinnytsia. I gave my friend's parents a ride but there was nothing more to do in Vinnytsia. Here, I can do some good.

00:07:14,520 Sanya: I'm enchanted. Have you heard of Ukrainian Cossack-Sorcerers?

00:07:19,800 Reporter: - Of course. Sanya: - Bullets can't hurt us. Even Grad rockets.

00:07:24,440 Reporter: - How old are you? Sanya: - 23.

00:07:26,920 Reporter: 23 years old... You're young.

00:07:33,840 Reporter: - Are you picking up these people? Sanya: - No, no.

00:07:38,800 Sanya to passers-by: Walk on the sidewalk, not on the road. Our people are there. They'll tell you everything. You will arrive at the Romanovka bridge. And there, on the left and right, you can walk down.

00:07:52,880 Passerby: Thank you.

00:07:59,520 VO: We arrive where the first group is waiting for evacuation. Sanya honks nervously. He's in a hurry. The evacuation must go smoothly. Rockets could fall at any moment.

00:08:16,960 Sanya: Hello. Evacuation.

00:08:20,480 VO: This is a new apartment building. Most apartments are already abandoned. However, some residents have not left yet. These could be the last moments before the Russians invade.

00:08:33,160 Sanya: Do your neighbors want to evacuate?

00:08:36,480 Man: I'm coming to tell you. We're staying to defend our home.

00:08:43,840 Reporter: Anyone else living here?

00:08:46,280 Man: Yes, somewhere in here, wait a moment.

00:08:53,680 Reporter: Are you preparing to leave?

00:08:57,680 Old man: My wife is. And our son. I'm not leaving for now. Reporter: - Why?

00:09:05,520 Old man: And why would I leave my land? We're staying. To give those Russian fascists...

00:09:13,480 Reporter: Aren't you afraid of bombing?

00:09:16,640 Old man: What shall we do? And who will... Who will defend us?

00:09:25,800 Reporter: Do you have water and electricity?

00:09:28,360 Old man: We have water, but no electricity. For a while now.

00:09:33,040 Woman: We're heading for the bus. While there's still time.

00:09:38,240 Sanya: Come on, boys and girls.

00:09:54,120 Sanya: I can't promise anything, the situation is unstable.

00:10:02,680 Reporter: - Aren't you afraid? Old man: - I'm not.

00:10:22,640 VO: Despite the ongoing Russian attacks, on the streets, there're still people waiting to be evacuated. In front of the polyclinic, we meet a group with kids.

00:10:37,560 Man: We are under fire. The children are scared. We're all scared. No one is evacuating or taking anything. There are no ideas.

00:10:51,600 Reporter: How many kids do you have?

00:10:54,880 Man: Everyone here has two children, me too. Some have little babies. God is with us in Ukraine. Right, son?

00:11:14,400 Woman: I have to pick up my mom. I can't leave her. We go together or we don't go at all.

00:11:24,120 VO: We constantly hear explosions. The refugees are exhausted and scared. Many can't handle the stress. Some are unable to walk on their own.

00:11:35,600 Old soldier: Calm down, please. From all over the world, the only ones helping us are Poles.

00:11:49,640 VO: Sanya is going to pick up more people. He is aware of the risk. He has recently come under fire himself.

00:12:00,800 Sanya: Two days ago I lived in an 11-storey building. I was renting an apartment on the 7th floor. And two days ago we got shelled with Grad rockets. Half an hour of heavy shelling. I was recording it from the 7th floor and on the other side, on the 5th floor, a rocket fell inside the building.

00:12:44,040 VO: People have been dying in the streets from day one. There are more and more wounded. In the post-Soviet countries, the dead and wounded are referred to as 200s and 300s, from the designations of transports with bodies and wounded.

00:13:02,080 Reporter: Driving through, have you seen casualties?

00:13:06,360 Sanya: Yeah, 200s. Not many civilians, thank God. I've seen 200s and 300s.

00:13:17,920 Reporter: And where is your family?

00:13:19,680 Sanya: In Vinnytsia. But they think I'm a volunteer in Kyiv.

00:13:29,200 Reporter: - Do you have gas? Sanya: - What?

00:13:31,200 Reporter: - Do you have gas? Sanya: - They left me a full tank. This is the biggest car left in Irpin, on the bridge.

00:13:41,560 Reporter: I haven't seen another car this big still driving here.

00:13:44,600 Sanya: I've been lucky. Yes, mine is the biggest. I took over 150 people out yesterday.

00:13:52,680 Reporter: - But there was heavy shelling. Sanya: - We were under fire. It lasted a long time.

00:13:57,960 Reporter: Aren't you afraid of death?

00:14:00,240 Sanya: I told you, I'm enchanted. A Cossack-Sorcerer.

00:14:06,160 VO: We arrive at the place. It is an estate of single-family homes. A woman and her daughter get on Sanya's bus. Like many others, the kid doesn't understand what's going on. She's hugging her favorite toy.

00:14:21,000 Little girl: I have a unicorn here. I have lots of toys.

00:14:27,040 Reporter: - You have lots of toys? Little girl: - Yes. But we forgot the pets from grandma's house. Can you imagine?

00:14:35,160 Mother: It's okay.

00:14:37,160 Little girl: I can't wait till we get back home.

00:14:41,440 Reporter: You'll be back soon. Get some rest with your mom and dad. And then you'll come home. Everything will be fine.

00:14:53,200 VO: Sanya is also supposed to pick up an elderly woman escorted by her son, a soldier, who has come here from the front line.

00:15:03,440 Sanya: Is everyone on the bus yet?

00:15:05,880 Old woman: Everyone from here.

00:15:07,760 Sanya: - Are they fighting there? Soldier: - Some of our troops. We're fighting.

00:15:12,240 Sanya: Okay, bye. All the best.

00:15:17,040 Reporter: - Are you beating them? Soldier: - We are. They should be afraid, not us. We are at home.

00:15:24,280 VO: The Russians keep shelling the town full of civilians. Bullets are falling on houses, parks and streets.

00:15:37,400 Voice on video: Shit!

00:15:45,760 VO: One of the rockets hit a fleeing family, killing a mother with two children and a volunteer. This barbaric attack shocked the residents.

00:16:39,480 VO: Sanya also came under artillery fire, while evacuating a group of children.

00:16:46,160 Reporter: What you're doing is dangerous, do you understand that?

00:16:51,840 Sanya: I understood it completely yesterday. They started shelling the road ahead of me. It was really scary. I had 16 people on board. They were in a shelter before. I promised to take them to a safe place. Half of them were children.

00:17:16,920 Reporter: Do you know that people were killed at the bridge?

00:17:20,640 Sanya: Yes, three bodies lay there since the morning. Listen, we're headed to the bridge. You can walk down on the left and on the right. Choose one side. Men, help the women, especially the elderly who can't walk. You all need to get down.

00:17:44,040 VO: It's hard to believe a few days ago, Irpin was a peaceful town near Kyiv. Today, it is a war zone, full of death and destruction. Russian invaders keep shelling the civilian population. Rescue workers arrive at the bridge with victims of the shelling. They are mother and daughter. Their car was shot at by a Russian tank. Their condition is serious. They must be taken to ICU in Kyiv as soon as possible.

00:18:23,320 Doctor: She's losing consciousness. We brought people from Irpin. Russian soldiers shot at them.

00:18:35,080 Reporter: - A whole family? Doctor: - Yes. A man, his wife and daughter.

00:18:42,400 VO: A dramatic fight for life is underway in the lobby.

00:18:48,240 Man: They've lost consciousness. The conditions in Irpin's hospital are terrible. It's cold. Horrible conditions. They have no access to medical equipment. They can't do basic examinations. We thought the tanks had already gone and the road to Bucha was clear. But they were there and we had to pass them, about half a mile. We took a side street, but they were there too.

00:19:31,720 VO: Resuscitation was successful. Both women were saved.

00:19:48,520 Driver: Two seats left to west Ukraine.

00:19:51,880 VO: Buses that pick up refugees from the collapsed bridge in Irpin arrive at a transfer point on the outskirts of Kyiv. Here, you can get water, food, and help from volunteers. This is also a moment to rest before continuing the escape. Tension gives way to emotion, images of war return.

00:20:16,120 Girl: This is a nightmare. We walked between tanks, between soldiers, foreign soldiers. It was horrible. There were bodies there. Wounded people and bodies.

00:20:38,400 Reporter: - Civilians? Girl: - Yes, civilians.

00:20:41,160 Woman: There were children there, shot dead.

00:20:43,960 Reporter: - Was this today? Woman: - Yes.

00:20:46,960 Woman: I don't know when they shot at the car but people were killed.

00:20:58,640 Woman 2: People are hiding in basements, many kids among them. Everybody is frightened. It's very hard for everyone. They're sleeping in basements. No electricity, no water. It's a humanitarian disaster. They believe that they came here to defend us from the Banderites.

00:21:21,560 Reporter: Have you told them it's not true?

00:21:23,720 Woman 2: How can we explain things to people with rifles? We just told them: "Guys, we want peace."

00:21:29,880 Reporter: What has been going on?

00:21:32,400 Woman 3: People there think all of Ukraine is under occupation. For a week now, no network, no cell phones, no Internet. People thought this was the end.

00:21:54,600 Man: Our parents experienced war. They thought we wouldn't. But here it is. I don't think there has been a single generation without war.

00:22:05,760 Reporter: Did you imagine that the Russians would attack us?

00:22:08,760 Man: Never! No one imagined such a thing. Who imagined Germany would encourage peace between Russia and Ukraine? That's ridiculous. They beat them together in WWII. I just can't wrap my head around it.

00:22:28,040 Reporter: - Thank you. Man: - All the best, goodbye.

00:22:36,160 VO: Ambulances with wounded people keep arriving at the transfer point. These are often civilians whose cars were shot at by Russian soldiers.

00:22:51,000 Reporter: What happened to you?

00:22:52,920 Injured man: They shot at my car.

00:22:57,200 Reporter: - You were driving? Injured man: - Yes.

00:22:59,600 Reporter: - Alone or with someone? Injured man: - Alone. I wanted to drive away. He was alone, and for some reason he started shooting at a civilian car.

00:23:14,000 Soldier: We need an ambulance. Just sit tight for now. EMTs, please help him.

00:23:20,320 Reporter: Tell me what happened.

00:23:23,000 Man: They shot at a civilian car. They wounded me.

00:23:27,040 Reporter: - Where are you injured? Man: - In my arm.

00:23:30,160 Reporter: You were driving from Bucha or Irpin?

00:23:32,400 Man: From Irpin.

00:23:33,520 Woman: Please, get on the bus. We're gonna go now. We have to take a lot of people. Dear volunteers, could someone drive a whole family? Listen, the men will help you. But first you need to calm down, drink some water or tea.

00:24:00,560 Doctor: She can sit. Please, try to get up slowly. Nice and slow. Now, we'll find a car to take the lady to the train station. But I don't know what's next.

00:24:17,840 Woman: There will be three of us.

00:24:20,280 Doctor: I'll get a car for you.

00:24:22,120 Woman: We'll ask there. We'll figure it out.

00:24:24,640 Doctor: - Stay together, don't get lost. Woman: - Sure.

00:24:30,080 Reporter: What will you do next?

00:24:31,720 Woman 2: We'll go to Lviv.

00:24:33,760 Reporter: Do you have family there?

00:24:35,720 Woman 2: Yes, my daughter is there.

00:24:37,480 What was going on for the last few days?

00:24:42,480 Woman 2: They were shooting. Rockets were flying. It was a nightmare. Sometimes...

00:24:49,080 Reporter: - Sorry?

00:24:51,200 Woman 2: Sometimes... we would sit in the basement, then come back. We took our grandma with us.

00:24:58,280 VO: Although we are several miles from the front line and cannot hear artillery fire, a lot of police and soldiers with guns are around. They are hunting saboteurs trying to get into the city with the crowd. The sight of rifles pointed at people is no longer surprising.

00:25:18,240 Woman: - Mom, look at you going. Boy: - Yeah!

00:25:21,280 Woman: You even made it across the bridge. She hasn't walked in six months.

00:25:27,440 Reporter: How long did you walk?

00:25:29,560 Woman: - Over the bridge? Reporter: - Yes.

00:25:31,520 Woman: Some foreign journalists carried us in their arms.

00:25:35,400 Reporter: - What about before the bridge?

00:25:39,480 Woman: There are Russian troops there. Miraculously, we were evacuated. She's had a stroke.

00:25:54,680 Woman 2: Are you recording? Let the Russians see this. These bastards!

00:25:59,560 Woman: Let my brother see his mother...

00:26:04,200 Woman 2: Show this to their parents. Show them killing innocent children.

00:26:12,320 Woman 3: Such a big Russia and such a dwarf there... Everyone is afraid of him. May they have no place on Earth. God, what am I going through at 70 years old?

00:26:27,280 Woman 2: We saw planes flying straight at the houses and our fighter jets chasing after them. This is terrible. It's a real hell. How can we live like this? What's this for? Who did we hurt? They killed eight people. Three of them were children. They killed a family. There are cars burning there. This was yesterday.

00:26:54,800 Woman: People, Russia is so big, rise up against this dwarf. They say this is our fault and we should be punished. That we are evil.

00:27:05,400 Woman 3: How is this our fault?

00:27:08,600 Woman 2: Please, God, help us. Let people see this. Damn him... May he burn in hell.