Mariupol resident was able to escape from the besieged city by sea — he sailed for almost 2.5 hours

Dmytro Yurin from Mariupol was able to escape from the besieged city by sea. He swam about four kilometers and came out in a nearby village. The man was at home on March 16 when Russia launched an airstrike on a drama theater in downtown Mariupol.

This was reported by The Guardian.

"I saw bodies and pieces of bodies. I pulled out one woman, then a girl, then a boy. Everyone was injured. The boyʼs legs did not move. He shouted. My hands were shaking. I was covered in blood, " Yurin said.

After that, he returned to his shelter and decided to flee the city. The man put on his fishing pants and found four empty five-liter bottles, which he tied around himself. In the evening he went to the beach, walked for a while, and then dived into the water.

Yurin swam for almost 2.5 hours — during this time he covered 4 kilometers. The man went ashore in the village of Melekino. There he was sheltered by a retired couple who fed the boy. The next day, he was able to board a minibus traveling to occupied Berdiansk and evacuate from there to Ukrainian-controlled territory.