Heroes of Doxy.me: Russians in the House
Nikolay and his family waited a few days after the start of the war to watch how things would turn out. The plan backfired when the Russian military arrived in his backyard, sending Nikolay and his family into hiding for ten days.
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Mary:
I am eager to hear what the beginning of 2022 was like for you. What was the mood and what were your thoughts?
Nikolay:
The, the rumors about invasion of Russia to Ukraine were from December and from different sources, Western press and analytics and intelligence. We still were not believe that they actually be able to do such a massive attack so that it will be a full, full fight. And wide fight. So we were concerned. I was concerned, but they were constantly moving their dates of invasion and few times it was not happening while it shouldn’t be should have an alert. So we were pretty tired of it and decided to leave for, to live normal life, but to be ready for some actions, something that will start.
Mary:
So what kind of preparations did you make?
Nikolay:
We, we had a, we had a plan to first to be ready to move, to have we collected our bags To talk, to have ability to move fast somewhere from, from the place we were. That’s the main thing, and that’s it I think.
Mary:
And on the morning of the 24th, were you still in your home?
Nikolay:
Yes, I was at my home in Bucha town with my wife and daughter at 6:40 AM. My aunt who lives in Kharkiv city on the northeast of Ukraine. She called me and told me that there are Russia invaded and the war started. So I was shocked. I was shocked that it was happening. And after that, we started like to exchanging news and thoughts between family, some phone calls because are relatives. Yeah. We decided to stay on, not do anything in panic and wait to see what will be going in few days, how will it go? Maybe there will be no reason to move from the other place. In the day. During the day we started hearing the explosions in the air, like the aircraft were flying helicopters and it was becoming closer and closer by the evening, we knew that there was an active fight in Gastonia all down. It’s like 70 kilometers from, from my spot. So we were
Nikolay:
Like, we prepared some water in some water, some food in case that we will be out of electricity. And we had a full tank of fuel in our car. So, so we were like also continuing to prepare for something. Yeah. And after all the third day Russian enforcements were pretty close to our town. And the very, I knew that I read from the news that two bridges from Bucha to Kyiv are blew up by our army in order to not let them into Kyiv. So I understood after that they will stuck in Bucha <inaudible> European towns that, and we have to move from there. We started, so we collected our things closest, like what it mean minimal amount. And we decided to move a bit Western to the bordering town. So where my wife’s parents were leaving in the private building. So it, and from our perspective, it was less interesting for Russian reinforcements from the war point. So we moved there and the also spent there three days until on the third day, in the second place, we were blocked first time in <inaudible>. We were Russian reinforcements were around. We were hearing constantly explosives and explosions in the air in near by the land. Heavy vehicles were moving around, back and forth on the main road.
Nikolay:
And we, we were blocked and we understood that it’s dangerous to move from there. So we started prepare our sealer. We like pulled out from there, like a potato, some, some food. And we made there like places to delay to spend there at night. And the, we started spending their time when we heard explosion explosions, very close to us, like in 100 meters. And so on after that, we, at some point we were out of electricity, like two days. So, but where we had the generator, we charged our device devices. We were on there on the connections. Yeah. We were in touch with our relatives, friends. I was in touch with my teammates from, from work and one I had, and there, I think there first day, our, from our being in bordering town, they, it was a occupied by the Russian army.
Nikolay:
Like we were about to leave this town. We, so the, like the silence in between fights, we collected our, we got our things back from the cellar, back to the house in order to put them to the car and, and drive out. And, and that moment, our there, our reinforcements and Russian occupants were very close and they started fighting and our house was under crossfire. So we were in between, somewhere in between. So we, as we heard heavy strikes of artillery of tanks, troops were running around and fighting, shooting. So some bullets were reaching our friends and our, our house. And we laid down to the floor. We were laying about about like 20, 30 minutes there. And we found the, and they time to go to the a separate household building with the cellar that we equipped with the food provision water and like laying place. So I grabbed my daughter, wife, and we moved there and locked.
Nikolay:
And, but, but our parents, my wife’s parents are almost 90 years old grandmother away, they were not so fast and they cannot move. So they were staying by the evening. So it was around 11:30 AM started and they were waiting for a silence up to like 9:00 PM and they, and Zen, and they came for us during, during that time, there were, was a heavy striking to the fence of our neighbors and our friends was damaged. We, we didn’t see what was affected, but we heard very heavy explosions. So we were afraid. I was afraid for our families. That was their host stay in the car. So as are they safe and so on. So luckily thanks to God, they were safe there. And they came to us in the evening and they told us that there are no more, no more fence. They, their windows are broken and luckily they are, they are safe.
Nikolay:
So during the fight, some Russian troops were on our garden in our area, like around in, into, and jumping into the neighbor, neighbors like territory. So they even were shaking our handle on the door, like chicken there. And they would like to hide or like to use it as a position. It was locked luckily. And they were not trying to, to, to lock it out to unlock it. So they just quickly checked and the runaway, or we hear, we hear them like speaking to each other. They were also like, they were also like riding around on the heavy armored vehicle vehicle for troops. Yeah. That’s it. That was, and then the, we spent like three days without leaving that as a buildings. It’s small building. It was. So we were out of electricity, out of warm place, like out of heat, eating cold food, like just so, such a sense of when we had some and we had enough food, but we didn’t know how many times we will have to spend. So we were very, a small like pieces.
Nikolay:
Yeah. And there were constantly like fights and artillery there, artillery hits. So first it was into our direction nearby. And then Russian troops came to our positions nearby and were aiming towards Bucha town direction. So during the next day we found out that they they’re Russian army, like they robbed our house while it was like semi opened with, with damaged windows. It was some something unusual for me because what are their purpose? What they came for for a fight, for a win victory or for the, like, to, for the money and so on. So it was something that I couldn’t understood their motivation. So, so they stole our electronics techs need techniques, gold, some money, not, not, not much money, but they checked all house.
Nikolay:
Yeah. And a few days later, later we found out that they are left. They left our documents and a we were happy for that. Yeah. Documents. And so also, so after their act, the epicenter of the fights were moved to Bucha on the first day they occupied sense. Like they moved from our positions and we were, we had the ability to go out and to go to the big house and to take a food and to cook there and so on. So they were still appearing from time to time. And we were hiding by the time.
Nikolay:
Yeah. So we were trying to keep silent or we, and visa four and half years old. And daughter, it’s a, it’s a hard, hard task because she doesn’t really understand what it means and why, why to do that. So actually it’s a most stressful, most stressful period in my life. And it’s, it felt like in a prison. So you were in the cellar, so nothing to do, no news. No connection no ability to make a call. So I had, and others like 20% left or the battery charge. So I was turning it on once per day for 10 minutes, trying to make a call to my relatives and get some news about my area. Was it safe to exit or not? And what’s going on. So, and time was moving so slow. Like it was, I, for me, it felt like six hour, like gone.
Nikolay:
I was looking at the, at my watches, it, it was like only two hours and there was nothing, nothing to do because it was also very dark. You cannot read, cannot play and you have to be silent. So not to be supported by Russian soldiers. Yeah. So the sixth day of being, being under occupation and being blocked, we found out that in the neighbor house cellar also is someone is leaving and it, it is our neighbor and it was old man. He had a radio and we had bought batteries and we kinda enabled his radio and started to receive in the news. And I felt so alive when I heard that Ukraine is still fighting. We even had strong resist. I was so happy. It was a new hope. Yeah. Because I, it was pretty tough for the current circumstance is not knowing what is going on. Go, go in on. So, and so we were continuing like few hours a day, like listening to the radio. We, we were attending our neighbors and collecting, like exchanging foods, cooking foods for cold food. We were repairing the water from the well on the, on the street, on, on our territory. So it become a bit better.
Nikolay:
And the, there Are some, at some point, at some point there were also like few stressful moments. It’s related to our car. So we had a car and it was parked near the house. And just like under the roof And there was a stressful moment that our key was stolen. We had two keys and one of them were stolen, was stolen. So we were expecting that if the occupants stole our, like things from the house, they could work and steal our house, our car also. And we were being not able to evacuate and exit there. So it was like, almost like say to our car “goodbye.” So we were not expecting that it will be or damaged or like they can stolen by occupants or Russia. So, and, and the, on the eighth day there, additionally, but I had a second key. So we were still able to exist when this situation will be appropriate. So these, all the time we were like under constant strikes, nearby heavy, heavy, heavy, heavy heat, heavy shots, to our positions and from, from our positions. Yeah. And the Y and the eighth day, our, our place, wherever you exit exit. And we fixed it, some, some, some windows, we fixed the fence. And we were like a bit more safe, at least from other eyes.
Nikolay:
And the, after that someone fully left their car, his car, black BMW crossover in front of our exit, in our fence. So I realized that we were still not able to exit or when we’re, we will be needed. So the version was that they blocked our exit intentionally to steal the car later.
Nikolay:
Well, so, yeah, so, but we were safe and we were trying to support each other to find the positive, the most positive moment that we were hearing that in all parts of Ukraine, our army or enforcement are given strong resist. And our president also calls and he stayed staying in Kyiv under great danger, despite the airborne was planning to reach Kyiv. And despite the Kyiv, the city was one of the main targets for Russian army, and we were happy that Russian plans were not working so that we, our army broke the airplanes. So they, I will, I am proud of my army though. So we are so thankful for them, for, for that they, they are doing. And one day it was the tenth day, ninth of March, one, man, our neighbor came to us and told us that there will be an able evacuation. So the green corn corridor for evacuation. So we were concerned about this information. We didn’t understood where he, where did he get it from?
Mary:
What did he tell me more? What he reported?
Nikolay:
He reported that the, there, our government governments were agree, agreed about the evacuation line. I have an evacuation corridor that we can go the center towards the center of the wall versus down and, and evacuate and go out to the safe place to the Western Ukraine. It was a Kyiv first. And that was a visa vis during the visit special road, which is agreed on both sides. So it was unclear information. And the we decided to wait for confirmation from official resources missing, because there were a lot of news about their fake evacuation corridors that they, that Russia actually was evacuating people, not to Ukraine, but to Russia and Belarus, it was very dangerous and dangerous to get there. We wait for an hour until we, for an hour a deal there, we got a radio. And from there we heard that it’s official evacuation and we can decide, and we had discussion and we decided to try, it was still a risk because Russian could, they could still not let anybody, anyone and, or, or, or even shoot at the evacuating people. So we all already heard about that from the news and about their evacuations in the south of you, of Ukraine.
Nikolay:
So we decided to try, because we realized that every day, every day it will be more dangerous and more dangerous to stay as there because Russian army was blocked and they could not enter the Kyiv actually. So, and they were concentrating in Bucha in Hostomel and LPN. Yeah. And we, we got our things, clothes bags, some food for like around one or two days water. And we drove to the truck and drove to the point,
Mary:
Wait, so BMW has left so that you could exit,
Nikolay:
Sorry. Yeah. Yeah. Luckily they’re black BMW. They left that morning. So they left it morning and we also felt relieved for them that news. Yeah. Thank you for, for catching this moment. Yeah. And we were unblocked. Yeah. So we went out, I went out from the house. We were driving through the, like through the street and we were seeing the damaged houses, burnt houses, damaged, threes, something on it. And some, some pieces of vehicles. One, we saw one damaged heavy vehicle. We believe that since occupants, it wasn’t Russian vehicle. So we, there were no Russian forces. I didn’t know. They allowed to see a civilian people to, to drive and to go to the point. And the point I saw, I don’t know, more than 1000 cars, vehicles, lots of people. So all center, like it was a long, long line long queue of the cars and people on food
Mary:
Nikolay at this point. Were you with just your wife and daughter?
Nikolay:
Yeah. I was with my wife and daughter, my wife’s parents, and they were still spectating a situation where they were not really like, Can you please repeat?
Mary:
Was that hard for your wife to leave them behind?
Nikolay:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It was very hard but they didn’t want to exit, so we couldn’t tell them nothing about this. Like we were telling, but not. So they had own reasons to stay and they were hoping that everything will be okay. And finally they, they joined us later. Okay. In their car. So, so we, as, at that point, lots of people, no one was aware what, what we’ll do. And when was evacuation begin? after three hours waiting there, Red cross cars arrived and picked people. And, and we started moving after, after them. So we passed three or Russian occupants’ block posts. Happily, they were not checking us and not stopping us, unlike the other evacuation places. So we were driving, we drove to the Ukrainian block posts, Ukrainian side, Ukrainian controlled side. So we were staying in big traffic on the Ukrainian control point.
Nikolay:
So we, they greeted us very warmly. So our army, yeah. They were giving us food and water. And were routing, explaining us where to go further, on which road. So we enter it, give we enter it Kyiv. And we stayed for a night in the, in, in our friend’s house, in the Kyiv area. So we started next morning, we started moving to the Lviv city and we reached there in two days, like two nights. There were a lot of block posts, not many, a few oil, oil and gas stations were working. So definitely if it said of their fuel, we had enough, but we had to plan our road from one gas station to do another one to continuously around a field our time then. So, so in the we for a second night, we stayed in our friend’s apartment in Khmelnytskyi city. And on third, on third day in the middle of the day, we reached Lviv city and we reached doxy.me office hub where we were greeted warmly by our teammates, teammates, and the parents. Once they get get news, that, that it’s, the evacuation is real. Everything is good. They decided to leave and they drove and drove after, after us
Mary:
You experienced relentless trauma, it sounds like for over 10 days, what was it like to finally get in the car and know that you could perhaps safe and go somewhere? What did that feel like?
Nikolay:
It was still concerning until we, until we reached the Ukrainian controlled side, because could, it could happen anything so they can start shooting at our, at us. So, and why I was, while I was, we were staying in the queue, in the evacuation, So I was talking to people and they were telling me that the day before they were trying to evacuate by themselves on and other car and Russian forces were staying in the, any road cross and shooting at people in the cars. And luckily they were safe, but their car was damaged. They drop that car. And that day that we were evacuated, they were on another family car. So that’s so many people lost, lost relatives there. And, and so, Yeah.
Mary:
So how long did you stay in Leviev
Nikolay:
I’m still in the leaf. I, for some time I, we were, yeah, we were in the doxyme hub. So thanks, thanks to our company for this opportunity, because there was not, not possible to find someplace to stay. So the, after like four days, we decided that it’s better to, for our, for us to that my wife and daughter will go to the Poland. Somehow we found out that we have our relatives in Poland and they helped they okay. Do my wife and daughter to do a place, to find a place and settle there. So now the wife and daughter are in, in Poland and I’m in Lviv living and working. Yeah.
Mary:
How long have you been separated?
Nikolay:
Three, three weeks old. Soon. It will be a month or maybe it’s already almost a month.
Mary:
So did you make that decision to secure their safety?
Nikolay:
Yes. Yes. Yeah. Even in Lviv until last week, there were air strikes, strikes and sirens. So we were moving to the first floor for shelter Where it’s safer to, to avoid air strikes. And there were few close strikes to them live era. So in living suburban as some oil stations, big farms, army objects, military oranges. So, yeah.
Mary:
How have you been feeling the last three weeks? Do you feel any safer or are you always on alert?
Nikolay:
I feel much, much safer. It’s I’m not already like patient, but, but it’s pretty safe, especially in comparison to being under occupation. So under occupation, any moment, any around movement, you, you could, you could die or you can con can, can lose dear people to you. So I wasn’t not. So, so it was my biggest fear to, to lose someone of them, of my dear people. So even not for me, Not, not for myself. I mean, I mean,
Mary:
So Nikolay, this, I assume that really nothing in your life before this was anything like what you experienced starting February 24th. Is that, is that right?
Nikolay:
Definitely. I haven’t been in such dangerous situations.
Mary:
How do you feel changed from this experience?
Nikolay:
Interesting question. I believe at least I moved the border of the stress that I can be in. I have made some conclusions about like planning. So
Nikolay:
I would say it’s one of them. I could say that it’s better to plan by negative scenario. Like even if it’s not real so often our emotions are fighting against us and against, against the mind. So we do have to be critical thinking. Yeah. And what else? So also like nailed some Wells about what’s the real, like what, what really matters in, in, in your life? Like not the things. And first of all, it’s people that support, the love you can give to them, like the show and things like that. Yeah.
Mary:
And earlier that, that you prayed, do you, do you feel, tell me about your spiritual life and experience in this traumatic event?
Nikolay:
Yeah. We were praying all my family. We were praying, we were praising him to save us. So, and when the part of my family, which were outside of the occupations were also praying for us because they were not knowing what was going on on the, we were out of connection. So yeah, so we, we were hoping on the gap, like so, and like hoping, I think that’s, that’s mine, that’s mine. So I’m really thankful. I have confidence that it’s his hand of help. He helped really to survive and to, to exit that place safely. So as, as you might know, later, there just a few days later in that area, Russian army started committing war crimes. So this and this even now called like Bucha massacre, and yeah, very lots of, lots of civilian innocent people wear hurt and were executed and so on. So it’s also a long story to tell. Yeah.
Mary:
How have you been able to sleep and eat and focus?
Nikolay:
So we almost, we had a bed slept because in the sealer, it was called about, about zero degrees and slower zero, two degrees up to five degrees in Celsius. It was wet there. So you can, so all clauses are become where becoming of wet after like 10 hours placed there. So sometimes yeah, we eat very small pieces of food amount because we had to divide people, divide for a long time, because we didn’t know how many time we will have to have for the same amount of food. Yeah. It was. Yeah, definitely. It was not, we were eating, let’s look at a little portions because even you can not eat a lot.
Mary:
Right. Wow. Nikolay, you have been through something remarkable. I can’t thank you enough for being willing to go over those events and share them. I’m sure it does not make it easier to talk about it, to just be reminded of all that you’ve experienced. So thank you for your generosity. Is there anything you want to add before we close?
Nikolay:
Thank you for, for interview, Mary, I’m very thankful. I felt that I’m very grateful to our or owners of our company to any teammate in my company, that they were, they are very helpful supportive. Even when I was offline, they were sending me and SMS messages in the hopes that once I will be able to receive that news about, they were sending some news about important news about evacuation. So I wasn’t receiving that. And I received once I was in the, in the spot or the location. And I was, I was so amazed by these people. So, so doxy.me people, you are great, you are best. Yeah. And my, after that, my, our American teammates were offering help. They, my teammates were writing, reaching out and offering like they to stay at the houses, to live from there. How many time I will need to provide any support.
Mary:
I’m so glad.
Nikolay:
I’m so proud that I am. I’m the part of such a great team of great people. I was at doxy.me.
Mary:
And I am proud that you are part of such a resilient country. It truly amazes me, Nikolay. My prayers are with you. And thank you again.