FOR 98-year-old Lidiia Lomikovska, Russia’s invasion is worse than the Second World War, which she also lived through.
She’s learnt to trust her instincts.
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It’s why when Russian forces entered her home village of Ocheretyne in eastern Ukraine, she and her family decided it was time to go.
However, under heavy shelling, Lidiia soon became separated from her relatives, so started walking west in her slippers.
“I took a stick and a plank of wood [for support] and made my way,” she told the BBC. “My legs were carrying me somehow; I wasn’t carrying them!”
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She would end up walking 10km (6 miles) until she was picked up by Ukrainian police.
“There’s nothing left! It’s all upside down!” she could be seen telling her much-needed ride in a released video.
The village she left behind is gradually being turned into a hellscape by approaching Russian troops. The closer they get, the more intense the artillery fire becomes. Entire apartment blocks and houses are slowly turning to rubble and dust.
“As I started walking, I had to lie down a couple of times,” says Lidiia. “I once lost balance and fell into the grass. I had a sleep, and then carried on walking.”
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Lidiia explains one of the officers asked how old she was. “I said I was 48 or 49, he didn’t believe me!” she says with a chuckle.
She was eventually taken to a shelter for some rest, before being reunited with her granddaughter, Svitlana.
