Notes From an Environmentalist; Twenty Days in Mariupol.
I was delighted to see that the locally produced film 20 Days in Mariupol won a well-deserved Oscar.
Below is a chapter from my novel Backstory. It is based on the true story of the incredibly brave medic in Mariupol that smuggled bodycam footage of the atrocities that took by in the nearby Avostol steel plant.
Chapter 12
The Medic
Mariupol
May 20, 2022
Gregor groped for his cell phone annoyingly ringing beside his cot.
“Good Morning Sunshine!”
“Ugh, good morning Tatiana. What time is it?”
“5 0’clock!”
“OK where are we going today?”
“I can’t tell you. But get your passport, press vest and body armor.”
“Sounds interesting! Who are we seeing?”
“Ukraine’s newest hero.”
“Who’s that?”
“You’ll find out. Oh and bring your bathing suit we may go for a swim.”
“I don’t have a bathing suit.”
“Either do I.”
As soon as they got out of Kyiv they drove south through the countryside that made Ukraine the place Russians all wanted to go for their holidays.
“Now can you tell me where we are going?”
“Mariupol.”
Mariupol!’
“Yes, my family used to drive down there every summer. We had a boat on the Black Sea.”
“So we are going boating?”
“No, we are going to the Avolstall Steel Plant.”
“How can we get in?”
“I have some contacts. But you better put on your bulletproof jacket. We’re going to meet a medic called Taira.”
“You mean the athlete who was going to go to the Invectus Games?”
“But she didn’t go. As soon as the war broke out she signed up to be a medic I met her during training.”
“How did she wind up in Mariupol?”
“She’s been there from the beginning. They offered to evacuate her but she chose to stay until the bitter end.”
Their military escort led them through the underground tunnels to a makeshift bunker where Tatiana saw Taira sitting on the floor. She looked exhausted, but still beautiful with short-cropped blond hair, aviator’s glasses and war-torn army fatigues.
“How are you my brave friend?”
“Who is your boyfriend Tatiana?”
“He is not my boyfriend Taira! This is Gregor McFadden he writes for an American newspaper and wants to ask you some questions.”
“Fire away!”
“I’ve heard a lot about you. What have you seen down here?
We've seen everything. We often don’t have time to treat soldier’s wounds so we have to amputate their arms and legs. Sometimes we have to work in the dark.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem for you! Taira used to be famous for doing epidurals with her eyes closed.”
“True, I taught myself to close my eyes and feel between the vertebrae for just the right entry point. It is actually more accurate than using your vision. I taught the other students to do the same. But most of them chickened out and opened their eyes at the last minute. I always kept mine closed.”
“Must come in handy down here.”
“The worst cases are the children. Last week we had a young boy and his sister. They were both starving and had multiple injuries. I kept trying to calm down the poor boy who was frightened and in deep pain.
We lost him after a long effort. He simply didn’t have the strength to go on. I stood there crying uncontrollably, saying ‘I hate this! I hate this!’ until the next patient was carried in.”
“Who was he?”
“A Russian soldier he may have shot the young boy for all I know.”
“What did you do?”
“I told our soldiers to treat him gently because he was a prisoner of war. Then I cared for him like anyone else.
But I’m afraid I must get back to work. Petra do you need to powder your nose?”
Once they were inside the washroom Taira embraced her friend.
“I have slipped my tampon applicator into your left pocket. It has 256 gigabytes of video taken by my body cam. It shows everything we have been through. Can you see that it gets shown to the world?”
“Of course my dear friend. Are you sure you wont take the offer to evacuate?”
“No this is where I’m supposed to be. Just make sure your boyfriend gets the videotape out.”
“For the last time. He’s not my boyfriend Taira!”
“You were always a little oblivious Tatiana! Be well and have a good life.”
Gregor and Tatiana drove through 15 Russian checkpoints with Taira’s tampon applicator tucked away safely in Tatiana’s purse. The ruse worked. The soldiers were embarrassed to inspect the tampon too closely.
That night Gregor e-mailed the video to the Globe who sent it out over the Internet.
A week later Russian television reported that Taira had been arrested for distributing anti-Russian literature. She was clearly drugged and groggily read a prepared statement telling Ukrainians to lay down their arms, because their situation was lost.
She was never seen again.