A Cold War Bunker Becomes A Lifesaver In A Devastated Ukrainian Village

Svitlana Gynzhul, 55, stands at the entrance of a former Soviet-era nuclear bunker on February 24 that has become her home in the village of Luch in Ukraine's Mykolayiv region.

The village was hammered by Russian fire almost from the start of the war, when it ended up close to the front line. With nearly every home destroyed, residents sought refuge underground.

Gynzhul cooks "pyrizhky," a fried pie with potatoes and cheese filing, for her husband and the three other people who live in the bunker.

"On the first day, when everything started, we started to clean up the bomb shelter. And it was very good that we started doing that, because on February 24, in the evening at 11 p.m., a shell exploded in our village," she said.

In April, with their village caught between Russian and Ukrainian forces, Gynzhul, her husband Dmytro (pictured), and their son were forced to flee their home.

Gynzhul pets her dog Ryzhiy near the entrance of the bunker.

"As my flat was bombed out, I took things from there for the bunker: my gas stove and blankets. When shells flew over our heads, we had our comfort down here. And now, we still live here," she said.

Gynzhul also brought others to the bunker, including her neighbor Iryna Sichkar (pictured). "We immediately brought pensioners and children (to the shelter), because we knew it wouldn't be easy for them. It hurt me to see how everything got destroyed. I was frightened and hurt," Gynzhul said.

Sichkar (left) cries next to Gynzhul as she speaks about her son. He was captured early in the war in Mariupol and she does not know if he's alive. "I only pray my son will come home," Sichkar said. 
 

Gynzhul walks alone along a street in her shattered hometown, where nearly every building was destroyed by shelling. Her son is now preparing for deployment to Bakhmut, the scene of some of the war's bloodiest fighting.

The only child left in the village is 6-year-old Slavik, pictured as he climbs the backside of the bunker where he lived for 1 1/2 months with his parents. The family eventually fled Luch, but returned to salvage what they could from their destroyed home.

Gynzhul carries a shopping bag next to the canopy that leads to the entrance of the bunker where she now lives. She survives on humanitarian aid and her 4,000 hryvnyas ($109) per month salary from her administrative job in the village.

A bird's-eye view of the entrance to the bunker that has proven a lifeline for residents. Before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the village had 935 residents; now, 50 people live amid the war-torn landscape. As many as 30 locals are said to be living underground.

Gynzhul, husband Dmytro, and Sichkar look at a damaged building as they clear and burn branches. "Our future depends on our attempts to make our place better. We'll try as good as we can, to live in a village with flowers, a clean house and green trees again. Everything will be alright," Gynzhul said.