Sievierodonetsk has been occupied since the end of June. The invaders promised people who remained in the city to restore utility systems, reconstruct the city, and many other things.
Socio-political magazine "Tribun" analyzed the promises of the self-proclaimed occupying "authorities" of the city and debunked main Russian fakes.
Fake 1. The Restoration of the city
In Sievierodonetsk, 80% of buildings were destroyed. Far back as the end of June, when the Russian army occupied the city, the invaders repeatedly claimed they would rebuild it. At the end of September, the Russian magazine Tass published a news feature about the restoration of houses and even social facilities in the city.
Our photos taken in October show that the city has not changed a bit, and no one has taken care of the wrecked buildings
Instead of the promised restoration, the occupiers created a list of buildings to be demolished. This information was confirmed by the Luhansk Regional Military Administration.
"In many high-rise buildings in the city, there is a roof broken, the windows are broken, not to mention the absence of some walls.
Rather than helping people, the occupation authorities of Sievierodonetsk carry out an order to inspect houses that are not suitable for living. Already more than a hundred high-rise buildings are subject to demolition. They are actively engaged in this matter, instead of preparing the city for winter. Why? To show russian politicians a picture of a flourishing city. They are not planning to restore anything, because any damaged building will simply be demolished."
Fake 2: The restoration of communications
The situation with water, electricity, and gas is far from satisfying as well, despite the claims of the occupants to have returned the promised conditions for normal existence.
For example, a news story on the TV channel "Russia 1" told that electricity, water, and gas in the city have already been restored.
According to Tribun, people in Sievierodonetsk do not have stable gas, water, or electricity in their apartments.
"Before the pseudo-referendum, the workers even removed the roofs, now everything is standing still, and no one is coming to finish the job. Same with radiators: they sawed them off and just abandoned them. They do not allow you into the so-called administration, in the so-called city gas authority, they do not respond. There are no windows in the apartments, construction film no longer helps, it is too cold." say residents of Sievierodonetsk.
Locals complain it is now impossible to even fill up the gas cylinders they used to cook food on. Gas stations refuse to help for unclear reasons.
"People in Sievierodonetsk are trying to weld gas and water pipes on their own. After that, they wait for the utility services to at least connect all this to the system. It is evident, however, that most of the city utility services have left, in some cases even with equipment." say the locals.
Meanwhile, propaganda media publish information about the active work of utility services almost every day.
In reality, people collect water from puddles remaining after the rain, and all russia could do was install technical water tanks and "washrooms" for the population around the city.
The above post says that in August the invaders announced the start of preparations for winter in Sievierodonetsk, but almost nothing is known about the work done. Nothing we know about major reconstruction or demolition of buildings.
People have to charge their phones from generators. Another huge problem is the absence of work.
Mobile communication has appeared in Severodonetsk, but there are still big problems with the Internet.
The situation with heating is unclear. The occupiers have announced they plan to install boiler houses and heating networks, but it's just talk.
Fake 3: Medicine
The Ministry of Health of Ukraine confirmed that there is not a single surviving hospital in the Luhansk region.
According to Oleksandr Stryuk, the head of the Sievierodonetsk Civil-Military Administration, medicine in the city is at a primitive level, as are other aspects of life.
After that, the occupants did not mention the medical situation in the city. No work is being done to launch medical facilities.
Fake 4: Local Markets
The occupiers claim that the Central Market in Severodonetsk is "full of life" In fact, it can be seen that there are significantly fewer products compared to before the occupation, and some shops are closed.
And this is what the Central Market was like under the Ukrainian authorities.
Yana Romanchenko
