During the full-scale invasion, Valeriy lived in the central district of Mariupol, in a private house near the market.

"We stayed home with my mother, uncle and friend until 9 March. On that day, the russians started a very large-scale shelling of the district. They were using Grads. In 10 minutes, we got ready and ran to our mother's friend. We ran into the house. We saw a dead woman because the shell exploded only three metres away. It also killed the neighbour behind the house. 

I found out that a shell had hit the neighbouring house. My classmate Slavik survived. His wife, child and mother-in-law were killed. There are at least 7 crosses in every yard. We cannot imagine how many people died in the city,' said Valeriy, a resident of Mariupol.