1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,000 JUDY WOODRUFF: The city of Zaporizhzhia lies in the southeast of Ukraine along the Dnieper River. 2 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:10,160 It's very close to the front lines and so far remains in Ukrainian hands. 3 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:13,760 In the early days of the war, fighting at its nuclear power plant 4 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:18,760 put the entire world on edge. Now things have settled down there somewhat, 5 00:00:18,800 --> 00:00:23,800 but Zaporizhzhia has become a way station for thousands trying to escape Russian attacks. 6 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:28,440 Special correspondent Volodymyr Solohub is there for us. 7 00:00:28,440 --> 00:00:32,240 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: Zaporizhzhia is relatively calm now. But the routine 8 00:00:32,240 --> 00:00:37,240 here is anything but routine. The city has become a major logistics center for those 9 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:41,840 fleeing the war in Mariupol and other towns in southeast of Ukraine. 10 00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:43,120 OLEKSANDR STARUKH, Governor of Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine (through translator): We have 11 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:48,080 evacuated around 112,000 people to central and western parts of Ukraine 12 00:00:48,080 --> 00:00:52,000 since the beginning of the war. We serve as a sort of layover hub. 13 00:00:52,560 --> 00:00:56,960 If all of those evacuees stay here -- and that's tens of hundreds of thousands of 14 00:00:56,960 --> 00:01:01,960 people -- it would be very difficult for the city. Most of the evacuees just stay overnight 15 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:05,440 and keep going into Central and Western Ukraine. 16 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:09,680 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: This is estate's main layover hub. All those fleeing the horrors 17 00:01:09,680 --> 00:01:14,560 of war come to this processing center to get help moving further from the fighting. 18 00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:20,280 And you can see the damage on the cars arriving here. Viktoria was forced to live three weeks in 19 00:01:21,840 --> 00:01:26,000 a basement of an apartment building in Mariupol with her 6-year-old daughter, 20 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:31,000 Elisabeta, and two elderly parents. She told us the daily struggle to even cook. 21 00:01:32,320 --> 00:01:33,920 VIKTORIA SHEKHOVTSOVA, Mariupol Evacuee (through translator): 22 00:01:33,920 --> 00:01:38,920 We would put a pot a fire outdoors, add some water, start cooking. When they 23 00:01:39,040 --> 00:01:43,920 would start bombing, we would run back into our basement, then come back to see if it's ready. 24 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:46,880 A lot of young guys helped us with whatever they could. 25 00:01:47,440 --> 00:01:51,200 Before the war, you would call that looting. Now it's just some help. 26 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:56,200 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: Staying in Mariupol was, of course, very dangerous. But fleeing the city was 27 00:01:56,800 --> 00:02:01,800 both dangerous and uncertain, since they didn't have Internet access, and hence the outside world. 28 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:05,360 VIKTORIA SHEKHOVTSOVA (through translator): On March 19, 29 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:09,280 when we were watching our apartment burn, we realized we needed to leave, 30 00:02:09,920 --> 00:02:12,560 but we couldn't leave our neighborhood. We were too afraid. 31 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:17,120 Some people left at 4:00 a.m., packed their cars and drove. 32 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:21,840 Some didn't make it and were turned back. There were no evacuation buses whatsoever. 33 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:25,520 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: And while the worst is behind Viktoria and her family, 34 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:29,760 their future is uncertain. As she walks into this welcome center, 35 00:02:29,760 --> 00:02:32,880 she says she's not really sure what's next for her. 36 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:38,240 For many, the road from Mariupol and other besieged cities in Eastern Ukraine took 37 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:43,240 days before finally reaching this parking lot of a hardware store on the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia. 38 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:50,680 And, inside, they can get some clothing for those who had very little time to pack before 39 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:56,520 fleeing the war. And, here, they're being greeted by the volunteers and social workers. 40 00:02:57,600 --> 00:03:02,600 They can get some food and hot drinks, and, for the first time, feel some sort of normality. 41 00:03:04,880 --> 00:03:08,880 They arrive here with children, pets, and the few belongings 42 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:13,880 they could take with them. Many are confused, frightened, and not sure what to do next. 43 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:20,720 But all of them ask the same question: Why did this happen to their city? 44 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:23,680 OLEKSANDR STARUKH (through translator): One of the main problems of Mariupol, 45 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:28,680 according to both the experts and those who fled the city, is the absence of air defense systems. 46 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:33,840 If they had a proper air defense, Russians wouldn't be dropping 1,000-pound bombs on 47 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:38,840 civilian objects. Zaporizhzhia also needs a proper air defense system. 48 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:43,880 This will protect both our civilian objects and chemical plants and other dangerous facilities. 49 00:03:44,400 --> 00:03:47,760 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: We discussed the need for more air defense systems 50 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:51,200 with a Ukrainian fighter jet pilot, his location, 51 00:03:51,200 --> 00:03:56,200 face, and real name could not be disclosed. He asked us to refer to him by his call sign, Juice. 52 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:02,680 JUICE, Ukrainian Air Force Pilot: Right now, we need some Soviet systems from our allies, 53 00:04:04,640 --> 00:04:09,640 like S-300, BUK system, which are mastered by our crews. Every day, 54 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:16,280 we are losing our systems. Russians are hunting our SAMs, our ground-to-air missiles. 55 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:24,120 So, every day, we need more and more and more. We need to close the sky 56 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:31,480 above our cities, above large infrastructure like nuclear power stations, et cetera. 57 00:04:33,831 --> 00:04:38,720 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: How big of a game-changer that would be if Ukraine was to receive 58 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:39,840 these types of weapons? 59 00:04:39,840 --> 00:04:44,840 JUICE: We have a lot of advantages in land forces. We have a lot of 60 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:51,000 good tanks, anti-tank missile systems, and other systems on the ground. 61 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:58,600 But, in the air, unfortunately, we are not able to fight efficiently. 62 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:02,560 VOLODYMYR SOLOHUB: And while Ukraine is waiting for more air defenses systems, 63 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:07,560 people from Mariupol and other towns and cities in Southeastern Ukraine continue living the horrors 64 00:05:08,240 --> 00:05:13,240 of war, whether in the basements of their homes or making the death-defying journey to safety. 65 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:19,280 For the "PBS NewsHour" I'm Volodymyr Solohub in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. 66 00:05:19,280 --> 00:05:23,120 JUDY WOODRUFF: And a note: Our coverage of the war in Ukraine is 67 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:28,120 supported in partnership with the Pulitzer Center.