The frontline the Ukrainian city of Oleshky is facing an escalating humanitarian crisis, with approximately 2,000 residents trapped between the Dnipro river and a heavily mined escape route dubbed the “Road of Death”.
Located on the river’s east bank, the city has been under Russian occupation since the launch of the full-scale invasion, leaving it largely severed from essential food and medical supplies.
Civilians, many of whom are elderly, have been reduced to foraging in abandoned homes for basic staples such as pasta and tinned goods.
Ludmilla, a resident currently sheltering in a fire-damaged house after her own home was lost to the Kakhovka Dam flood in 2023, described the settlement as “decaying” to BBC.
Due to the lack of resources, trees shattered by shelling are being collected for firewood to maintain basic survival.
Escaping the city remains a life-threatening endeavour.
The highway leading south-west to Hola Prystan’ is littered with burnt-out vehicles, some containing human remains, according to Volodymyr, a resident who recently fled via a volunteer-led ambulance.
Satellite imagery from November confirms at least eight wrecked cars on a single kilometre stretch of this route. Similar scenes of destruction are evident on the E97 road to the east.
Hazards reportedly increased during the winter when snowfall obscured mines, which residents claim were “scattered” by Russian forces, though a Ukrainian soldier noted their own use of mines to block Russian weapon deliveries.
The urban environment is heavily militarised, with Russian soldiers reportedly holed up in basements to avoid roving Ukrainian drones.
Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, has appealed for a “humanitarian corridor,” accusing Russia of “deliberate terrorism”.
On the contrary, the Russian Embassy in London attributed the crisis to “systematic strikes” by Ukrainian forces.
While the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) seeks further information from both authorities, many remain trapped in the crossfire.
Some elderly residents have become so accustomed to the constant danger that they have been seen dismissively waving at hovering drones as they walk through the ruins.
For those still in Oleshky, daily life has become a desperate struggle against starvation and the ever-present threat of explosives.
