‘It was catastrophic,’ says rescuer of missile attack on Ukraine train station | cbc radio

Regional Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said the station in the city of Kramatorsk was hit by a Tochka U short-range ballistic missile. The missile contained cluster munitions that explode in mid-air, scattering lethal small bombs over a wider area. Kyrylenko said thousands of civilians trying to flee the eastern Ukrainian city were at the station at the time of what he described as a “deliberate” attack.

Mook was near the train station when the missile fell and told him How does it happen guest host Dave Seglins about what he saw. Here is part of his conversation.

Nate, can you describe for me the moment this attack took place?

We passed in front of the train station on an overpass… I looked down and on the platform, I saw thousands of people, as I had been there the previous days. And we passed the station, probably not less than two minutes later, we heard the crashes, we heard the explosions. There were probably five to ten of them in quick succession… And we didn’t know what they were or what was going on. But we headed inside, ready to go down to our underground shelter.

One of the warehouse workers told us that he had actually seen one of the missiles. He was as close as if he was flying. You could see the wings of the missile, he said. And it was one of them, at least, that he saw intercepted by the Ukrainian air defense.

We were then notified that two of the missiles had hit the train station we had planned to go to next. So we headed over there to see what the scene was, and it was catastrophic.

What did you see?

The extent of the damage was across the entire station platform and across the front of the station. There was broken glass and debris everywhere. In fact, there was a missile, whether it was the remains of one or an unexploded missile or one that had been shot down, that was sitting on the grass, in the parking lot. On this missile the words “for children” in Russian were written in paint.

And there were cars that had just been turned off, had caught fire. There were people who were still in those cars as they burned. There were many bodies that had been collected from all over the train platform. This is an area where we had been standing the day before.

Evacuation trains are prioritized for women and children, mothers and their children, and also older adults and people with disabilities. In recent days, we have seen many people in wheelchairs. We have seen senior citizens being helped onto trains by amazing and heroic railway workers. And there is a seating area on the platform. They also had a tent there, where the older people could sit as they left. And this is the area that was attacked. And then there was complete carnage on the platform. And we ourselves saw dozens of victims and many people were being taken in ambulances and on stretchers to local hospitals when we arrived.

You have been in Ukraine for some time. What was it like being in the middle of an attack like this?

I must admit it was shocking because these train stations have been a lifeline for innocent civilians to get out of cities while they are under attack.

These stations are generally known to be full of innocent people… trying to get away. And I think although there was certainly a sense that an attack was coming on Kramatorsk in general, because it has been said that this is going to be an area of ​​focus now that Russian troops are regrouping and moving out of the north around kyiv. I think there was some kind of idea that the train station in this area would not be a direct target.

Now, of course, we are starting to see the brutality of these attacks in this invasion and what is being done, and we have seen what has happened in places like Mariupol… But to experience, to see, to realize that there is no value strategic in attacking a train station like this, with thousands of people evacuating… It’s just murder, straight up.

And so, you know, I think there’s a sense of shock and, you know, a complete shock of what happened today, of the brutality and inhumanity of it all. And yet, there is this determination of the Ukrainian people to fight and do everything to make sure that their people stay safe.

There is no other way to describe it other than the intentional killing of civilians to traumatize, to terrorize, to really create havoc and carnage.– Nate Mook, CEO of World Central Kitchen

How do you make sense of the fact that these innocent civilians are being targeted?

I’ve been thinking about this a lot since I first came to Ukraine…seeing the impact firsthand, meeting the people, hearing their stories told. At some point you think something is going to make sense, you have to be able to reconcile what’s going on, and you really can’t.

We were in a residential community in Kharkiv just a few days ago, delivering meals, when a shell landed not far from us. And this is purely residential. There is nothing there but apartment buildings where innocent people used to live. There is no other way to describe it other than the intentional killing of civilians to traumatize, to terrorize, to really create havoc and carnage.

These people have been told to flee the eastern regions. He has described them as desperate to do so. A train station has now been attacked. How will that affect people’s ability to get out?

This is a great question and I think no one really knows the full answer. The railways were a lifesaver…. Kramatorsk has been relatively quiet in recent weeks, compared to other cities in the east and certainly around kyiv. So it’s not clear that passenger service will return on the trains here. This may be the end of train service to Kramatorsk, and that means people will have to take buses out of the city by road.

The people here who are still in this city do not have vehicles. There are not many cars on the streets… The mayor estimates that there are still between 80,000 and 90,000 people in this city. However, many of them are stuck at home or walking. People who had vehicles, who had the ability to get out, have already done so.

Our job here was to support those who are trapped here, making sure they have the food they need, so that we don’t end up in a situation like Mariupol, where people are literally starving. And also to support these families as they make this long journey out of Kramatorsk. Our local team here that we are supporting and that lives here is determined to carry on. So we will do everything we can to support them while keeping our team as safe as possible.

Written by Olsy Sorokina with archives from CBC News. Interview with Nate Mook produced by Morgan Passi. Questions and answers have been edited for length and clarity.