Sometimes the smallest decision can change a whole life. Or end it. Andrii Nesterenko knows that very well. The 38-year-old businessman was startled on Monday afternoon when he heard a massive explosion. A rocket had just hit the shopping center in the Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, 600 meters from his home. The death toll reached twenty on Tuesday, although it is very likely to increase as rescue efforts progress. Against such a terrible background, Nesterenko can’t help but think he was lucky. “In 15 minutes I had to pick up a Puma backpack that my wife bought online,” he says in front of the few remains of the Rozetka sign, a type of Ukrainian Amazon.
At the other end of the ferris wheel is his neighbor Yurii, a clerk at one of the stores in the mall who was on the late shift that damn day. Since then, his family has been calling him on his cell phone with no answer. Everyone fears the worst. He is one of 36 names on the missing persons list.
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Talking to the residents of Kremenchuk these days — a city far from the war front that adds even more terror to the horror — is an exercise in constant remembrance of the steps taken on Monday afternoon: what they were doing then and with whom they were doing it deeds Vladimir Putin’s army changed their lives; which family or friends have been shopping at this moment in Amstor, the shopping center that nobody here will ever forget.
Andrii Nesterenko, a 38-year-old businessman who was accidentally saved from the rocket that fell on the mall.
Andrii himself has more names for both the fortunate group and the victim group. On the one hand Serhii, an old friend he used to play console with when they were both in their twenties, who is also on the missing persons list. On the other hand, his colleague Rostislav, who had gone to the mall that same afternoon but left in time to tell the story.
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Residents of Kremenchuk approached the scene of the disaster throughout Tuesday, still permeated by a strong stench of burning plastic. They carry flowers, toys, candles… Anything that would serve to pay tribute to the fallen and portray Putin’s troops as callous butchers.
French President Emmanuel Macron has described what happened in Kremenchuk as a “war crime”. Britain’s Boris Johnson has spoken of “utter barbarism” aimed at convincing the undecided of the urgency of protecting Ukraine. And the G-7 leaders issued a statement condemning this “heinous war crime.” Meanwhile, Russia justified the attack by saying that it was aimed at an arms factory. According to the Kremlin version, the fire would have spread to the shopping center, which according to his version was unused. Something obviously wrong. “Only mad terrorists are capable of launching missiles at civilian targets. Russia must be seen as a state that promotes terrorism. The world can – and therefore must – stop Russian terror,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy demanded in a message on Telegram.
But it doesn’t look like the international condemnation will affect Putin’s plans much. The day after the Kremenchuk massacre, six Russian missiles hit nearby Dnipro province, according to provincial governor Valentin Reznichenko.
Alarm sounds in Kremenchuk
Marina Marchenko stares towards the shopping center. Did you know anyone who was inside? “No, but that doesn’t matter. I go shopping every day. The people who were there on Monday are like family to me,” she replies, unable to hold back her tears. The conversation is interrupted by another air-raid alert and security officers’ orders to leave the location.
Headed to a safer place, Marchenko, a manager at a local supermarket chain, says she’s been “a lot more scared than before” since Monday. Had he gotten used to the noise of the sirens? “You never get used to that. But since Monday, every sound coming out of a car scares me like never before.”
The destroyed shops of the Amstor shopping center after the Russian bombing. Genya Savilov (AFP)
She has lived in Russia for many years and her sister still lives on the other side of the border. How do you explain what is happening between the two countries? “It’s an impossible question to answer,” he says. “Putin is a devil. But he is not alone. Many Russian citizens rejoice at the rockets falling on Ukraine. My sister, who lives there, says she sees very little solidarity among the people she knows,” she concludes.
After the attack, messages were shared by Russian citizens on social networks, applauding what had happened and calling for a new Bucha, referring to the massacre of hundreds of civilians committed by the Russians when they left that city in withdrawn near Kyiv. A girl who smokes with her eyes fixed on infinity says that her mood does not allow her to speak. Another lady angrily replies that everyone knows a victim and then announces that she doesn’t want to speak to journalists.
Nesterenko, the businessman saved from hell for 15 minutes, wants the whole world to know what’s happening in his country. He speaks Russian, like most Kremenchuk residents, but insists this has nothing to do with the language not being responsible for the bombs. “Russia has become the most feared terrorist organization in the world. We need to defeat them as soon as possible so they don’t do the same to the rest of civilization,” he says. And he adds that the only thing Putin is proposing on the other side of the border is “missiles, death, blood and tears.” And he asks the journalist to report to EL PAÍS in detail about the atrocities that are being committed: “The sooner the rest of the world is convinced of this, the sooner we will defeat them.”
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