As Russia closes in on Sloviansk, this taxi driver keeps working
SLOVIANSK, Donetsk Oblast — From a brick-walled garage that barely fits the blue car parked inside, Oleksandr Richak carefully backs his taxi cab out onto the narrow street. The 42-year-old usually starts work around 8 a.m., once the early-morning rush hour of deadly Russian drone activity in the eastern front-line city subsides. As he briefly parks the car outside a damaged one-story house, his…
Sloviansk, in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, is under increasing threat from Russian forces as they close in on the city. Oleksandr Richak, a 42-year-old taxi driver, begins his workday at 8 a.m., navigating through the hazardous streets. Nataliia, his wife, provides him with a bottle of lemon water before he sets off. Russian drones have become a significant threat, causing damage to vehicles and homes.
Richak and his friend, Ruslan Kuzmenko, a 54-year-old taxi driver, wait at the central bus station for passengers. The city is seeing a wave of residents fleeing due to the deteriorating security situation. Richak, who has a background in the police force, left the city in 2014 when Russian forces occupied Sloviansk. Despite occasional encounters with pro-Russian residents, he remains neutral, wishing them a "have a nice day."
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Independent's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
