Desperate Ukrainians take shelter in subway station in Kharkiv for 1 year

KHARKIV, UKRAINE - FEBRUARY 22: As Ukraine is marking one year since Russia launched a full-scale attack that killed thousands of people, some desperate Ukrainians are still taking shelter in a subway station in Kharhiv since the start of the war.Civilians living in the country's big cities such as Kharkiv, especially the capital Kyiv, have flocked to the underground stations to escape the Russian strikes every time since the beginning of the war.In the first days of the war, the metro stations, where thousands of people stay to protect themselves, turned into "underground cities".Anadolu Agency Video News (AAVN) videoed the displaced Ukrainian citizens who have been living in the Serpnia subway station in Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city, close to the Russian border and bearing the heavy scars of the war.Tents, mattresses, the noise of the subway, and a constant stream of people, all have been here since February 24 due to the fear of Russian bombardment.Natalia Shakhova, 59, has been in the underground since the first days of the war when almost 2,000 people hid in this place. She used to work in a kindergarten, but it is now closed.Natalia has an intact house, but she is afraid to spend the night there. Sometimes Natalia goes home to cook, wash and do her housework."We are safe here. I have been here since the first day of the war. I sometimes go home during the daytime. I prepare and bring food there. I stay in this subway station every night,” she explained.One of the occupants of the subway station is Yulia Mykhailenko. She has been the coordinator of the group of people living at the metro station since May 22. (Footage by Mustafa Çiftçi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)