Elena Svyeshikova, resident in Lanzarote: “My family in Ukraine is in a state of panic”

Relatives of the Ukrainian woman, who settled almost fifteen years ago on the island of volcanoes, reside in Lviv, where diplomatic personnel are taking refuge

February 24 2022 (16:14 WET)
Updated in February 24 2022 (16:53 WET)
Elena Svyeshikova (left) with her mother, Oksana Sveshnikova, in Playa Blanca, in the municipality of Yaiza. LP/DLP
Elena Svyeshikova (left) with her mother, Oksana Sveshnikova, in Playa Blanca, in the municipality of Yaiza. LP/DLP

“My family is in a state of panic. Everyone is terrified”, says Elena Svyeshikova, a Ukrainian woman who has lived in Lanzarote for almost 15 years and is closely following the latest news coming from her country. Her relatives reside in Lviv, a city located in western Ukraine, about 70 kilometers from the border with Poland.

Diplomats are taking refuge in Lviv these days to try to stay safe from the invasion, and NATO has also moved part of its staff from the Kiev office there.

“The closest bombing occurred about 200 kilometers from Lviv,” says Elena with concern, who has several of her cousins living there. "Although the bombs are not heard in Lviv, the panic is so great that the stores are full of people buying food and taking things out of the businesses running, putting gasoline in the cars..."

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