This is an urban-type settlement. Now it is called Petropavlivsk. It used to be Petrivka. I've lived here since I started school. Well, it was a long time ago. I worked as a driver at AAFNVS— Army, Air Force and Navy Volunteer Society. I studied to be a driver, an electrician. Then I joined the army.
I did military service in Germany. I was at the air border of the German Federal Republic - German Democratic Republic. I am a driver, electrician, radio operator by profession. We guarded the air borders. We had locators, radio stations to monitor the air. After the army, I worked as a driver.
I have known my wife since childhood. I came from Volgodonsk. I bought this room here. Then we built a house. We started living together.
It happened on 31 August 2014. And I had celebrated my birthday on 28 August. I went out to feed some strayed dog with a piece of bread. So I called the dog. It was quiet. Then I saw my daughter and granddaughter standing by the gate. She was holding her in her arms. How old was she then? Two years, maybe a year and a half. And then we heard this deafening sound. I didn't know what was happening.
I immediately fell down. I didn't understand anything. I just fell. I lay there, my daughter and granddaughter lay there. There were fragments everywhere. There was dust on the street. Fragments were on the whole street. People were playing cards nearby. So a man was hit in the neck. He died instantly.
I crawled back. I couldn't get up. I looked around and saw blood pouring out of me. We called an ambulance. We can't couldn't the bleeding. They took me to do an X-ray, but it didn't work. So I was taken to Shchastia. There was a hospital in Shchastia. I stayed there for a month. Then I had to learn to walk again. First, I used crutches, then I leaned on a stick. It was hard, my knee joint hurt a lot. I can't stand for a long time.
The pension I get is not enough. Life is war. The war has brought a lot of damage here. I never thought that this would happen when I get old. And now the children don't have jobs. I don't know what will happen to my grandchildren.
We have a thermal power plant in Shchastia. That is probably the only place where people still work. People work at the hospital as well. My neighbor works there. If the hospital closes down, I don't know what will happen.
My wife worked in a surgery department for more than 30 years. She was a nurse. She had a kidney surgery. She was taken to Luhansk. There is this doctor who agreed to perform a surgery. The surgery lasted six hours. She can't go near something hot, a gas stove, for example. So I had to cook myself. She's got some head problems right now. She can't think straight. She can't even dress. I need to keep an eye on her all the time. That is how we live.
She has already started to walk, but she does it badly, because she sits in a chair constantly. I tell her, "You need to move your feet more." I know what it is like. I learned to walk twice. The first time I had a broken spine. I just fell. I kept some piglets back then. I slipped and fell. I broke my fourth rib. This happened before I retired. So I had to learn to walk. If you lie on the bed for a month without moving, then you may not get back on your feet. So I tell her, "You have to move your feet more. Otherwise, you won't get to your feet."
We are worried about our children and grandchildren. What future do they have? People who retire now need many years of work experience. Where will they get work experience if they don't work anywhere?
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