"My second birthday": woman from Lviv shares her story of survival after missile attack
A residential building in Lviv was destroyed in a Russian missile attack on 6 July. As of 10 July, 10 people have been killed and 42 injured.
Vira Soturchak and her family are among the residents of the apartment building that was hit by the Russians. Here she shares the story of how she survived and memories of the night she lost her home.
Quote: "So! Today is my birthday! And yesterday was my second one, because this photo is of my house. My children and I were at home, in bed, at the time of the missile attack. Only my eldest daughter, Yanochka, by some miracle, was spending the night at her dad's," Vira wrote after surviving the missile attack.
Vira remembers waking up to an air-raid warning.
The building destroyed in the Russian missile attack on Lviv
Photo: Vira Soturchak
Quote: "Usually, I just roll over and say, like a mantra, 'F**king r*ssians', but then for some reason it worked, I carefully read the news and kept track of what was being fired and where. I must have felt something," the Lviv resident recalls.
Vira says it was very loud nearby after the first hit. She grabbed her youngest, five-year-old Davyd, wrapped him in a blanket and carried him to the bathroom.
Vira, a survivor from Lviv
Photo: Vira Soturchak
Quote: "Davik just had time to say: 'Mummy, shut the door!' As soon as I did, there was an explosion and all I had left in my hands was the door handle. Dust, a bent front door covered with bricks…", Vira noted.
Her 13-year-old twin sons ran out into the corridor on their own. At that moment, Vira quickly grabbed her youngest child and documents.
A missile fragment in the hands of 13-year-old Kostia
Photo: Vira Soturchak
Vira started shouting from the window: "Help me get out! The door’s collapsed! There are three children here!"
Neighbours came running and unblocked the door. Vira and her children ran out into the yard of the building. The screams of neighbours trapped under the rubble could be heard. A neighbouring house was also on fire.
Vira's house after the missile attack
Photo: Vira Soturchak
According to Vira, there was no all-clear yet, so they decided to run to a nearby park. Then they saw the next hit.
Quote: "At that moment, I just sat down, although I realised I could die. But my son Kostia was very smart! At that moment he fell to the ground, covered his ears and head with his hands and opened his mouth. I'm proud of him. At 13 years old, to have such endurance! My brave little warrior," Vira added.
Vira’s twin sons
Photo: Vira Soturchak
As she told Ukrainska Pravda.Zhyttia, her son had often watched videos about attacks on TikTok, so he quickly remembered what to do.
Fortunately, no one in the family was injured and they managed to run to the park.
After the all-clear was given, the children were taken to their father's apartment, which is nearby.
Vira, on the other hand, went back to look for documents and the cat.
Quote: "I guess I'm a unique girl. I took some perfume but completely forgot about my money stash. In fact, all I could think about at that moment was how to find our cat," the survivor recalls.
Vira with her youngest son, Davyd
Photo: Vira Soturchak
They spent two days looking for their pet and found him alive and well. Since the cat’s body was nowhere to be found, Vira continued her search, realising that he was not dead, just scared and hiding somewhere.
There were also two parrots in the apartment. The birdcage stood by the window on a table which was just behind the wall.
Quote: "By some miracle the shock wave went straight, and that saved their lives. I thought they were dead. But the next day, rescue workers returned them safe and sound. Everyone around looked at them very fondly," Vira shares.
The parrots
Photo: Vira Soturchak
Vira knows that she is insanely lucky, because the only injury she received was a small scratch on her leg. The children were unharmed.
The scratch on Vira's leg
Photo: Vira Soturchak
Quote: "Today is my birthday! I am sitting under my smashed-up house, waiting for permission to take the things that survived. For the time being, my children and I have a place to live. I don't know what's next...", Vira said.
Vira told Ukrainska Pravda.Zhyttia that when the full-scale invasion started, she and her four children left for Portugal. They lived there for a year and a half. Vira learned the language and found a job.
But they were homesick, so they decided to return to their own apartment, which they bought about six years ago.
Background: Earlier, we reported on how residents of the targeted building in Lviv shared their memories of the nighttime Russian attack.
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