aiI'm Irina from the city of Mariupol.

aiFor me, the war began on 24.02.2022 at 5 o'clock in the morning. I woke up from a phone call. It was my son.

aiI was scared because he never calls me at such a time. He told me that the war had started, that they were being bombed by air. In my neighborhood, nothing broke the silence that morning. But when I started listening, I heard distant sounds from the eastern side of the city.

aiMariupol was an industrial city, and it was often noisy at night or in the morning because of the work being done at the metallurgical factory.  Also, the city has been at war since 2014, and at that time too was shelled for several months. Those attacks stopped and the population began to live a normal peaceful life.

aiLater that day, my friend called me hysterically screaming into the phone, begging me to pack my things and leave the city.

aiThe railroad had organized a humanitarian train from Mariupol to Lviv. I started looking at the city's website for information about what was happening. The mayor claimed that this campaign would not last long, 2-3 days, and the population needed to be patient (although, as it was later revealed, he had already left the city).

aiI made a decision for myself that I would stay home and not go anywhere. For a few days there was relative silence in our part of the city, and then something terrible happened.

aiEvery day the front was moving closer to the sea. The shelling continued uninterrupted day and night, and no one could leave.

aiMarch 2 - the Internet was cut off, and the shelling intensified. The population began to go to nearby villages where they could at least collect water from streams. People made bonfires in their yards, warmed themselves, cooked food, and exchanged news. The weather also played a role. That year, it was -13 C in March, which is a rarity for our seaside city.

aiThe first victims appeared, people were killed at water intake points, and buildings were hit. The situation was getting more and more complicated.

aiBut on March 8, everything quieted down, only isolated shots were heard. The sun came out and warmed the air and ground a little. It started to feel like spring.

aiAnd for a while it seemed as if there was no war. A neighbor found snowdrops in the snow and gave each woman a flower. Everyone revived their spirits and even breathed a sigh of relief, hoping this was the end. There were rumors that negotiations were underway to resolve the situation peacefully.

aiThe silence did not last long, and the next day everything started to intensify.