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‘My mindset is totally different’ Photos and stories of Russians evacuated to Ukraine after the Sudzha school strike
Source: Meduza
More than 100 civilians from parts of Russia’s Kursk region now under Ukrainian control have taken shelter in the Ukrainian city of Sumy. Most were evacuated after the deadly February 1 strike on a boarding school in the Russian city of Sudzha. Ukrainian authorities say Russian forces hit the school, while Russia’s Defense Ministry has blamed Ukraine’s military for the attack. The Washington Post sent reporters to Sumy, where they spoke with Russians who had fled to Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers and officials were not present during the interviews, though police officers were stationed at the entrance to the shelter, the journalists noted. Some evacuees declined to speak with reporters, but others shared their stories. Meduza is sharing their photographs and accounts.
Lusya, 75, lived in the village of Ivnitsa near Sudzha in Russia’s Kursk region. She was among those sheltering in a boarding school in Sudzha when it was struck on February 1. “One moment, everything was still. The next, [there was] an explosion. Dust from the ceiling, doors torn from their frames, bricks flying through the air. People screaming,” she recounted. Lusya suffered a shrapnel wound to the head. “The Ukrainian soldiers bandaged me up right away, then quickly picked me up and brought me to a safe place,” she said.
Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post / Getty Images
Civilians from Russia’s Kursk region at a shelter in Sumy, Ukraine. The boarding school in Sudzha that was struck housed mostly elderly and ill residents. The building was partially destroyed, killing at least four people. Rescue workers pulled more than 80 survivors from the rubble. February 7, 2025.
Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post / Getty Images
Yulia, 41, lost both of her parents — 62-year-old Lyudmila and 65-year-old Anatoly — when the boarding school was struck. She told journalists that she searched desperately for them, but all she saw was a bit of her father’s coat buried in the rubble. Yulia, who suffered a broken arm, evacuated to Ukraine before the rescue operation was complete. “I didn’t need official confirmation,” she said. “They’re dead.”
Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post / Getty Images
Antonina Romanova, 69, spent nearly 24 hours trapped under the rubble. Both of her legs were injured. Speaking to journalists, Romanova said she didn’t know who was responsible for the strike on the boarding school. Her brother, 72-year-old Pavlo Amelchenko, a Ukrainian citizen who traveled from Kharkiv region to be by her side, had no doubt that it was a Russian bomb. “What else?” he asked rhetorically. Among those who helped pull Antonina from the wreckage was her partner, 69-year-old Mikhail. He cleared the debris by hand, telling Antonina he loved her as he worked. Mikhail told reporters he had voted for Vladimir Putin in the presidential election. “We love our country and our president,” he said. Then he added, “Even with what happened to us, we love our country and we are never going to betray it.”
Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post / Getty Images
Natalya Perfilieva, 45, was evacuated from a village near Sudzha in January, along with her 10-year-old son Denis, three-year-old daughter Liza, her mother, and mother-in-law. Ukrainian soldiers helped them escape. Speaking to journalists, Natalya said that while she was in the Ukrainian-occupied part of the Kursk region, Ukrainian troops treated her and her family well, even making sure her daughter had balloons and gifts on her birthday. She also said that living under occupation changed her perspective on the war. “[W]e clearly didn’t understand what was really going on,” she said, adding that the Russian authorities “are definitely not showing all the information” about the war. “My mindset is totally different.”
Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post / Getty Images
