Ukraine war: people seek protection from Russian bombs in catacombs - deadly trap threatens

Created: 2022-03-22Updated: 2022-03-22 3:29 PM

By: Stephanie Munk

In the Ukraine war, several cities are under fire from Putin's troops around the clock.

A humanitarian catastrophe is feared.

The news ticker.

• Escalated Ukraine conflict*:

  Russia's attacks on Ukraine continue, many cities are being shelled by Vladimir Putin's* troops.

• The population of Odessa seeks shelter in underground catacombs.

  This could become a deadly trap.

• This

  news ticker on the military battles in the Ukraine war

  * is continuously updated.

  Background information on the Ukraine crisis* can be found here.

Kyiv - The situation in the Ukraine war is not easing: the Russian army continues to attack numerous cities in Ukraine.

Russian airstrikes are reported for the capital Kyiv, the second largest city Kharkiv in the east, the port cities of Mariupol and Odessa and Mykolaiv in the south, among others.

In Odessa, which is under massive fire from Russia, some of the population seeks shelter in underground catacombs.

The 2,500 kilometer long tunnel system stretches under the entire port city into the outskirts and has several entrances and exits.

According to a report by the ntv station, it's dark and cramped there, but still relatively warm at 17 degrees.

Grocery supplies are also available, and there is even WiFi.

However, the catacombs also harbor a great danger: should a fire break out there, it would be a deadly trap for people seeking shelter due to the lack of a ventilation system.

A man looks out the remains of one of the windows of his home in Odessa.

Russian warships fired artillery shells at residential complexes from the Black Sea.

© Vincenzo Circosta/ZUMA Press Wire Service/dpa

War in Ukraine: Expert emphasizes great advantage of tunnel system under Kyiv

The Ukrainian capital of Kyiv also has a widespread underground tunnel system - which according to John Spencer, ex-US staff officer and expert on urban warfare, could be an advantage for the Ukrainian resistance.

"Ukrainian fighters must use these tunnels to their advantage," the expert wrote on Twitter.

"Tunnels are excellent for evading bombardment, storing weapons and supplies, and surprising attacking enemy troops."

Ukraine war: 80 percent of Mariupol's infrastructure destroyed - lack of food and water

Mariupol remains a focal point of the fighting in the Ukraine war: according to the military administration, "more than 80 percent of the infrastructure has now been damaged or destroyed" in the city that has been under siege by Russian troops for weeks.

The humanitarian situation there is "extremely serious" according to the UN, with "a critical and potentially life-threatening shortage of food, water and medicines".

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called "what is happening in Mariupol a serious war crime".

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov admitted that "the situation is very difficult".

On the one hand, the Russian army is "very numerically superior", on the other hand there is a "threat of a ground invasion" from the army of Moscow's ally Belarus.

However, there are also many losses among the Russian troops, several top generals have apparently already been killed.

Even a newspaper close to the Kremlin has now reported a high number of victims - albeit probably accidentally.

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