An elderly 98-year-old woman in eastern Ukraine recently fled the Russian-occupied area of Donetsk region by walking alone for 6 miles (approximately 10 kilometers) wearing slippers and leaning on a cane. She said that she had survived World War II and believed she could also endure the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
According to reports from the Associated Press, Russian forces entered the frontline town of Ocheretyne in Donetsk region last week. Lidia Stepanivna Lomikovska, a 98-year-old resident of the area, along with her family, made the decision to leave their home.
Lomikovska, accompanied by her son and two daughters-in-law, fled amidst the sounds of explosions, with one of her daughters-in-law having been injured by shrapnel from a shell just days earlier. During the evacuation, Lomikovska got separated from her family but persisted in walking alone.
Despite wearing slippers, leaning on a cane and carrying a piece of wood without water or food, Lomikovska relied on her determination to walk the 6-mile journey, eventually reaching the Ukrainian defense line. She was later escorted to a shelter set up by the police.
In a video filmed by the Donetsk region police, Lomikovska mentioned that she had fallen twice during her escape, needing to rest and even dozing off at times.
She said, “I lost my balance once and fell into a pile of grass. I slept for a while… and then continued to walk. Then, I fell a second time. But I got up, told myself I had to keep going, one step at a time.”
Police spokesperson Pavlo Diachenko stated that Ukrainian soldiers spotted Lomikovska walking alone on the road at night and brought her to a police team responsible for evacuating civilians from the frontlines, who then took her to a shelter for evacuees and contacted her relatives. She has since been reunited with her family.
Lomikovska mentioned that having survived World War II, she believed she could also endure the Russia-Ukraine conflict. She compared the two wars, saying, “The previous war (referring to World War II) was not like this one. I’ve seen that war, back then no houses were burned down. But now, everything is on fire.”
Oleh Horokhovskyi, the CEO of Monobank, one of Ukraine’s largest banks, announced on April 30th that the bank would purchase a house for Lomikovska.
Horokhovskyi stated, “Monobank will buy a house for Lomikovska to live in until this despicable war disappears from our land.”