The occupiers destroyed 85% of high-rise buildings and 35% of private houses in the city of Izyum (Kharkiv region). Now many people have moved into vacant houses and flats of those who left.
The Deputy Mayor of Izyum Volodymyr Matsokin, who coordinates humanitarian issues, told Babel about this in an interview.
According to him, people are actively returning to the city even before the onset of winter. Now 20 thousand people live in Izyum.
"There is no talk of reconstruction or demolition yet. We are now assessing the condition of the buildings. It will be possible to talk about reconstruction in the spring. Until then, we plan to inspect the houses and prepare projects — depends on funding. And now forecasting is a finger in the sky. Even in case we forget about the war, we will have the task of wintering," he noted.
Matsokin himself returned to Izyum on September 13, and on the 16th, the city hall resumed work and informed about a voluntary evacuation.
"A total of 28 people wrote a statement. The day before yesterday [October 28], we called them — there were 15 willing people left. It makes no sense to take out people in groups of three or four in a coordinated manner. They leave with volunteers. And the rest remains because they gave the light or there is no frost yet," the deputy mayor explained the situation.
- The Ukrainian military liberated Izyum at the beginning of September. After stabilization measures near the city, bodies were exhumed from the mass burial site. A total of 447 dead bodies were found. Torture chambers were also found in Izyum, where the occupiers abused local residents.