Fear and relief as relatives rush to attacked Ukraine children’s hospital

As Russian missiles struck Ukraine’s capital Monday morning, Pavlo Holoviy raced to the children’s hospital where his son was recovering from a recent operation.

Holoviy had heard that an air strike had hit the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital in Kyiv, leaving it shattered and smouldering.

Smoke was still rising from the rubble as he arrived.

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The 37-year-old said it was “impossible to convey” his emotions after finding his wife and son safe.

“Honestly, the main thing was to see my wife and child, I didn’t pay attention to the rest,” said Holoviy.

Patients, staff and family members had rushed to the basement after an air raid alarm sounded earlier on Monday, according to Natalia Svidler, 40.

“We heard a loud rumble and then the ceiling of the basement collapsed a little,” said Svidler, whose daughter Illia was scheduled for surgery at the hospital later this week.

“Everyone got very scared, of course. Everyone started screaming and running.”

Hundreds of survivors emerged from the bunker and gathered at the base of the gutted hospital, eventually forming a human chain to help remove rubble by hand.

Residents, rescuers, military personnel and doctors with blood-soaked scrubs all chipped in to help clear the debris, following reports that people were trapped under the rubble.

“For some reason, we always thought that Okhmatdyt was protected,” said Nina, a 68-year-old hospital employee.

“We were 100 percent sure that (the Russians) would not hit here,” she told AFP, as she described the frantic rush as staff moved children with IV drips to the bunker.

“I’d rather be killed! I’ve already lived! But why these children,” she asked.

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– Hospital ‘destroyed’ –

Broken glass and drops of blood were splashed along the hospital’s halls and doors, while emergency workers combed the grounds looking for survivors.

“The premises are destroyed. At this stage, it is probably impossible to work,” Oleksandr, a doctor at the hospital, told AFP.

A rescuer threw a small pink backpack from the window of the destroyed building, while others rolled away massive chunks of brick to clear the path for medics.

The body of an adult was covered by a foil blanket and placed on a patch of grass near the hospital, as a nurse and a police officer sought to confirm the victim’s identity.

An explosion later erupted over the capital, sending emergency workers and residents assisting in the rescue operation running for cover.

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Local authorities later said a second medical facility had been hit in Kyiv, killing at least four people.

The strike on the hospital came as cities across Ukraine were targeted by a blistering Russian bombardment early Monday, killing more than 20 people and injuring dozens more, according to officials.

Russia’s defence ministry later said the damage in Kyiv had been caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile.

The ministry said Russian forces had struck their “intended” defence industry and military targets.

The rare day-time Russian bombardment came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky landed in Warsaw before heading to the NATO summit in Washington, where he was expected to plead for more military support from the country’s allies.

© Agence France-Presse