10 Messages to Son from the Hell of Mariupol Blockade

Instagram user kolleg_opcev had published 10 screenshots with messages from his parents who stayed in Mariupol during its blockade of the Russian army. The author also mentioned that his parents were lucky to leave the city. To the moment of publication, the author hasn’t answered our messages to him. We have translated and transcribed 10 notes a mom wrote to her son. We also covered with *** names and personal information of people mentioned in those letters.

– 1 –

My darling, writing to you in case there will be a sparkle of communication and this message will reach you. We are fine. We have only gas. We are out of electricity and water for the second day. But we are holding on. Today *** has come to us, we have shared the food with her. The worst thing is not knowing what’s going on. We love you very much and hope that everything is alright with you.

– 2 –

Good morning, my son! It is 8:40 AM now. We have survived one more night. Last night we hardly slept; they bombed mercilessly. Seems it was very close. It was horrifying to die and leave you alone. But it is morning already, and we are alive. Gas, thank God, is still available. There is nothing more. We love you very much, take care of yourself, our dear!

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– 3 –

My darling, it is 9:33 AM now. We are ok. It is 15℃ in our flat, but now we have worked hard and warmed up. And once again rejoiced at our thriftiness. We found a box with garlands, batteries, and one flashlight. Now we have light. If our phones are low, let’s agree that you will try to call Grandpa’s phone at 12 noon and 9 PM. We will be waiting for your calls at this time. We love you.

– 4 –

Good morning, son. I find myself thinking that I am writing a diary, like the diary of Anne Frank.

We are alive, and each morning the first thing to do for us is to check the gas and calculate water reserves. Thank God we still have it. We have 4 cans of water. We switch off the phones, and only in the evening, we allow ourselves to read. We have one full battery. Saving it. 

We came twice on the 12th floor with phone and tablet to catch the net yesterday. Vodafone had one stick, but the messages did not go away, the calls didn’t work.

Yesterday we saw people coming back with empty water bottles. This is because they haven’t found the water. I saw a man who was scooping from a puddle with a shovel.

Here is such a horror. I’m afraid of every day, and I’m so scared of tomorrow. I’m scared to sleep, and I’m so scared that tomorrow they will bomb and we won’t have time to hide in the line for water. 

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And it’s also so sickening from the marauders, who broke into everything and robbed all the shops in the early days. And dragged and dragged. Bags of perfume from Brocard (he was burned), sheepskin coats from Papa Carlo, boxes of herring, cabbage in buckets, and baby diapers. Dragged even people from our house, even the little *** from our house, who feeds the cats. It’s a shame that we live among these people!

This had happened because the police were at the front, and now, Dad heard that there was an opportunity to patrol. They (marauders – ed. note) are caught, and their pants are taken off so that they walk around with a bare a**.

We love you very much! Take care of yourself, our darling! More than anything, I look forward to the moment when I can hug you and hold you tight. And when will this hell end! Dad and I kiss you. See you tomorrow, my dear!

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– 5 –

Son, my dear, hello! We are alive, and our hell continues. We spent the night in the basement of ***. We are grateful to them for sheltering us (4 people). Yesterday there was an explosion of terrible power from an airplane that dropped something on the Maternity Hospital of the Third Hospital. We had a window in the kitchen and a balcony door broken. At that time, we were lying on the sofa in the bedroom. As we learned later on the radio, it was a bomb with a funnel diameter of 10 m.

We jumped out in socks into the common corridor. Then we realized that if this had happened to our flat (effects of a bomb explosion – ed. note), then what about our grandmother’s flat? Dad ran outside and looked at their windows. And they simply do not exist. They are knocked out along with the frames. We grabbed the bandages and ran to them. Fortunately, our grandmother and *** were alive, but in hysterics, already with bags, they were standing at the exit from their apartment, or rather its ruins.

The explosion was so strong that all their windows and loggias were smashed out, the lock was broken out, the balcony was smashed out. All this flew at them, but fortunately, they are intact.

We grabbed their bags and took them to us, all trembling with fear. Our houses are all with gaping black holes instead of windows. The door of my mother’s neighbor’s one-room apartment was knocked out.

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… We returned for their stuff, quickly grabbed what was nearby, got into the car, and drove back through the broken glass under the explosions. It was terribly cold to spend the night in the basement, and everyone was shivering. Sleep at night in clothes on the ground on foam in a thin blanket. We grabbed some blankets, but that’s not enough for 4 people. And took a little food, which was cooked before.

Everything on our loggia is covered with glass. Today we wanted to go for food and things, but we couldn’t. Airplanes fly and bomb again.

We can’t even cook food, and we sit in the basement. Such is the horror.

Today, a rocket hit one of the nine-floor buildings close to us. Hit the 8th floor.

It is very cold to sleep in the basement, and dad is afraid for his kidneys. I don’t know if we’ll survive.

We hope you are well. Take care of yourself, my dear.

www.instagram.com/kolleg_opcev

– 6 –

… We have a lot of raw potatoes, but we cannot cook them. Yes, we don’t have much water. In the morning, we drink peach juice to save water. We listen to the news all the time, hoping that they (the Ukrainian army – ed. note) will help us. It’s no longer a pity, just to survive. It is very cold, but from home, we brought blankets and my fur coat, we are all wrapped up.

We haven’t bathed for more than two weeks, and we are dressed like cabbages, we sleep in hats, sheepskin coats, five sweaters and socks. We speak little, we listen more to the news, some play cards. Yesterday we read a little with a turned-on garland. Time passes slowly, everything is half asleep.

Yesterday dad helped *** to maintain the doors and windows on the third floor. I almost lost my mind by the time he got back. So I want to survive and hug you, my dear.

Yesterday *** hugged ***, and I quietly cried. But I’m glad you’re not with us now. I really want you to survive and be happy. We pray to God not to bomb us and that everyone can hug their loved ones. We love you very much. Take care of yourself, my dear. You are the most precious thing we have.

www.instagram.com/kolleg_opcev

– 7  –

… We are worried about you. Your city already has airstrikes, we heard. We really hope you are safe. We are still alive.

Today is Monday, and we are all sitting in the basement. Every day it gets worse and worse. If yesterday we also risked running back home, today it’s scary even to go to the toilet on the first floor.

Somewhere not far from ***, ours set up their artillery, and the sounds are terrible all the time, and the strike back also arrives. Nazi planes are flying in the sky. Fear.

We practically do not have the opportunity to cook food, we need to do it on the street, near the garage, and it is very dangerous there.

The water is running out, and everyone is scared to go after it. We eat little, one of my servings for two. Dad is always hungry…

www.instagram.com/kolleg_opcev

– 8 –

My dear son, I am writing to you from my father’s phone, my phone has died. Today is March 13, and we are still alive. I haven’t written for a long time, I’m saving my charge.

I don’t know where to start. You know what horror we are now. The city seems to be almost destroyed. In addition to Hail and other artillery machines, planes fly and bomb us.

Friends come to visit us and tell us the news. Yesterday a bomb hit the Central Post Office and broke it into two parts. And there were people in the basements, and it is not known whether they are alive. There is no one to get them out.

We, risking our lives, ran home twice for food and blankets. We even brought two sacks of potatoes, boxes of biscuits, belossia, tea, and sweets. We try to somehow thank them for the shelter provided to us …

www.instagram.com/kolleg_opcev

–  9 –

… Yesterday, there was heavy shelling. We ran and threw potatoes on the road, hiding in the blockhouse entrance. Such a fear.

They ran, my hands were shaking for a long time, and I was crying. From fear, from hopelessness, from pity for our apartment. It is in a deplorable condition, and we have nowhere to return. All windows are broken, the frames are turned inside out. The windowpane in the kitchen shattered and pierced through the microwave. My whole kitchen is carved with glass. There are no glasses on the balcony and in the kitchen, and there is no balcony door. So marauders can easily get in.

Doing anything is dangerous, we grabbed the food and ran. That’s it. I can’t imagine what we would do without ***

It is zero degrees in our apartment, the water where we took it earlier has not been brought up for two days, and it’s dangerous to stand after it. There is no firewood for the fire, and only a few people go out to cook. Scary…

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– 10 –

Son, my own. My phone still has some charge. We are still alive, although we have already said goodbye to life many times. We are in hell. We are being bombarded with Hail, bombs and mines. Not a single building remained. The whole city is on fire.

We are even afraid to get out of the basement, into which the whole people of the district with children are clogged at night. We almost do not sleep, we stand and pray in the basement corner with the entire crowd. We’re scared.

A shock wave in our car shattered the rear window, and there was a huge funnel behind it. It is impossible to leave (the city – ed. note). We do not know whether tomorrow will be survivors? Lord, why do we need all this? We pray to God that the basement will save us. *** have to feed us all, she’s just a saint. Portions are getting smaller and smaller. Dad is hungry all the time. We have to cook in the garage, and that is very scary.

The windows and doors in the house are broken, *** and dad are trying to close up holes under the shelling. It’s freezing, it’s about 5 degrees in the basement, and it’s always dark.

We pray that you are doing well and that you are happy. You are a good boy, and you can handle everything. I really want to believe that we will survive and will meet. We love you very much. Take care of yourself, dear.

www.instagram.com/kolleg_opcev