Since the shelling began, five babies have been born in this specially equipped underground shelter: “When we hear sirens and it becomes dangerous, we close this armored door,” explains Natalya, director of the maternity hospital located in the center. Kyiv.
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“There were three explosions nearby last night and the children started screaming. We recorded their screams on the phone,” Natalia, director of the institution, boasts. Since the beginning of the shelling, five babies have been born in this specially equipped underground shelter. “When we hear sirens and it becomes dangerous, we close this armored door,” she elaborates, in this dimly lit basement.
An incubator in the bomb shelter of this maternity hospital in Kyiv: since February 24, the date the Russian offensive began, five children have been born in the shelter. (GILE GALLINARO / RADIO FRANCE)
Around her, several mothers-to-be are waiting alone. Katya, 30, has come to the end of her pregnancy: “My whole family fled to Western Ukraine. I refused to follow them because I didn’t want to give birth on the road. the ward is not the target.”
“This is a girl,” exhales, next door Ilona, 35 years old, she also has a rounded belly, who is expecting childbirth in the coming days. Her husband is a soldier: “I have no right to say where she is, but he will not come to the birth. Natalia will take care of me. She was a mother, and a father, and a husband at the same time,” she smiles. “I talk to my baby, I tell him that everything will be fine, that the war will end soon, that his father will be with us soon and that he will take us home,” she concludes.
In this maternity hospital in Kyiv, Ilona will give birth to her third child. Her husband, who left to fight, will not be able to be with her. (GILE GALLINARO / RADIO FRANCE)
In these dark corridors, features are drawn and longing is palpable. But rather joy is visible on Bogdan’s face. This 24-year-old young man is one of the few fathers present. Two days ago, her son Cyril was born. “This is the happiest day of my life. It’s a mixture of happiness and joy, I have tears in my eyes,” he smiles.
Before recovery: “When we return home, I will join other volunteers to protect the country.” Despite Russian determination, the young dad assures him that his son “will live in a peaceful and independent Ukraine.”
Reportage in the basement of the Kiev maternity hospital Omar Wachman and Gilles Gallinaro
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