‘There’ll be nothing left’: Pokrovsk residents flee Russian advance

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00:00In a village near Pokrovsk in the Donbas, the moment has come for Irina and her mother

00:06to flee their home.

00:09The front line is moving ever closer as Russian troops advance.

00:13They have to leave before it's too late.

00:18She's 86.

00:19She's already had a heart attack and a stroke.

00:22We tried to evacuate once, but then her blood pressure rose so high, we had to cancel.

00:27It's not easy for her to move.

00:35Why am I leaving?

00:40I'm afraid.

00:41I don't want to die here under the rubble of this house.

00:50It's a shock for the locals of this region once deep behind the front lines.

00:55They've watched as towns like Bakhmut and Avdiivka have been flattened.

01:01We can never come back.

01:02There'll be nothing left.

01:03The house won't be standing.

01:09Volunteers from the Ukrainian charity SOS East have been getting people out of danger

01:14zones since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.

01:26The elderly and vulnerable are often the last to leave.

01:35Even with all the experience we have and all the training we've done, seeing the physical

01:39and emotional condition of the people is still the hardest part.

01:44Pokrovsk is an important logistics hub.

01:50Ukraine relies on its rail and road links to supply its troops and remaining cities

01:54in the east.

01:58Russia is pushing hard to take this town and has advanced 30 kilometres in this direction

02:04since February.

02:05A month and a half ago, this town was bustling, its restaurants, hotels and cafes were full.

02:14But now, well, it's basically deserted and you can hear the thud of artillery.

02:20The front line has moved much closer, very fast.

02:25Nearly three quarters of Pokrovsk pre-war population of 60,000 people have left.

02:31Authorities ordered a mass evacuation.

02:36But some locals remain, unwilling to leave their jobs or a lifetime of memories behind.

02:47This is my land here.

02:49My children are buried here.

02:52Where can I find a better place?

02:54There's shelling everywhere and the rent will be very high.

02:58I don't plan to leave.

03:06After they took Avdiivka, they advanced so fast.

03:11It took them only six months.

03:12I never expected that they would advance so fast.

03:16The Ukrainian army is fortifying the outskirts of Pokrovsk and has deployed extra brigades

03:22to the battle to defend this vulnerable and vital point on its eastern front line.

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