Hundreds of residents from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky crossed into northern Ukraine through Belarus on 24 October.
A humanitarian ceasefire brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump began in the Kherson region earlier this week. Civilians were given a four-hour window on 23 October to depart their homes. Approximately 750 evacuees arrived at a military facility in Chernihiv on 24 October after traveling on 25 buses.
Olha, one of the residents, described the conditions as "horror" and said, "People were stepping on mines, dying and being maimed, all just to survive."
Viacheslav, another resident, stated, "We came back from hell." Tetiana and Volodymyr had been residing in a neighbour's abandoned house after their own home was destroyed by fire three years ago.
Tetiana said, "There's nothing for us to regret leaving. We don't have relatives there. Our children are married and don't live with us in the city."
Olha noted that many people remain in the city under those same conditions and added, "If we managed to survive in hell, we'll survive here too."
Palii, who described a hole blown into a bathroom, said, "There's no job I can't handle. Digging, hoeing, planting, building. I can even do demolition work."
