98-year-old woman left occupied village on her own and walked 10 km under Russian shelling – video
Lidiia walked 10 km (about six miles) on her own from the partially occupied settlement of Ocheretyne in Donetsk Oblast to Ukrainian-controlled territory – at the age of 98.
Lidiia was forced to leave her home – a house she had built herself – when the Russians razed it to the ground, the National Police of Ukraine reported.
Lidiia started her journey to Ukraine-controlled territory with her son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter. At one point they became separated, and the 98-year-old had to continue on her way under constant shelling.
She says she fell several times out of sheer exhaustion, but would take a breather and then proceed on her way. Some Ukrainian soldiers found her in the evening and took her to the White Angel evacuation group.
"At the peak of the hostilities, this pensioner amazingly remained alive and unharmed," law enforcement officers say.
Lidiia is now safe and sound in an evacuee shelter. She says that despite the difficult journey, she feels fine.
"I survived that war [World War II – ed.] and now I am experiencing this war. I have nothing now," she says.
Law enforcement officers have located the members of Lidiia's family who had also managed to leave the zone of active combat, and it’s thought that she will soon be able to reunite with her family.
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