Before the war, our village was a dacha cooperative. Steelworker, miners, chemists, railway workers from Donetsk, Avdiivka, and Yasinovataya built houses here. Now yards are replaced by ashes. Things that were not destroyed by shells were destroyed by fire. An entire street burned down last summer.

The Grey Zone is a life without firefighters, ambulances, police, shops and pharmacies. You can only count on your own strength here.

About 30 residents live here. The youngest, Zhenechka, is two years old. I have an assembling point in my house. Here we decide whose turn it is to go for water and medicine, where to find a part-time job. Doctors come here as well.

My neighbour Serhii Vasylovych lived and worked in Donetsk. He lost a home there. Now he can't even retire. Some of the documents, including the employment record, remained in Donetsk and probably disappeared already.