Lviv Diaries — Western Ukrainian city scrambles to protect evacuees and monuments_Xinhua

People form a line to pass supplies at a refueling station in Lviv, Ukraine, March 5, 2022. (Xinhua/Ren Ke)

– Evacuation trains from major cities in Ukraine, such as Kiev and Kharkiv, pour into Lviv, the country’s sixth-largest city about 60 km from the Polish border, bringing large numbers of evacuees from the fighting.

– “No one knows how the situation will develop,” said a resident of Lviv. “We all hope and pray that in a few days life will return to normal.”

LVIV, Ukraine, March 9 (Xinhua) — Under mostly cloudy skies with a few snow showers, hundreds of volunteers handed out food and hot drinks to those waiting at Lviv Central Station in western Ukraine. Ukraine, that trains take them to their neighboring countries in the midst of the Russian-Ukrainian military conflict.

“We are ready to help everyone,” a volunteer who wished to remain anonymous told Xinhua. The freezing temperatures, the crowds and the chaos didn’t seem to deter him. “People make me strong,” he said with a broad smile.

Evacuation trains from major cities in Ukraine, such as Kiev and Kharkiv, are pouring into Lviv, the country’s sixth-largest city about 60 km from the Polish border, bringing large numbers of evacuees from the fighting. The city itself has also become a transit point, with some of its public facilities turned into reception centers and shelters.

Lviv resident Stephan Pylyp, who operated 21 shoe stores across Lviv and employed about 150 people, told Xinhua that although the military conflict forced the closure of his shoe factory in town, he still decided to distribute winter boots to the needy.

People are seen at a train station in Lviv, Ukraine, March 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Ren Ke)

“Nobody knows how the situation will evolve,” he said. “We all hope and pray that in a few days life will return to normal.”

Maxim, an English teacher who had to flee Kyiv, decided to stay in Lviv after sending his wife and daughter to Germany. Pledging to volunteer as a translator for foreigners arriving in the city, Maxim said he would be more than happy to lend a hand to others as he was offered help when he arrived. .

Compared to southern and eastern Ukraine, Lviv has been relatively untouched and has become a safe haven for locals and foreigners alike.

The authorities and residents of Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine with a population of some 720,000, have spared no effort to protect the city’s well-preserved historic and picturesque Old Town, a site United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Site.

At the four corners of Lviv’s Rynok Square – one of the city’s most important attractions in the heart of the old town – the four 18th-century stone statues of ancient Greek deities have been wrapped in protective plastic and fixed with adhesive tape.

Photo taken on March 5, 2022 shows a shrouded statue in front of the City Hall in the Old Town of Lviv, Ukraine. (Xinhua/Ren Ke)

In addition to covering statues and sculptures around the city with moss, city workers installed wire mesh on historic buildings and churches and erected wooden panels to protect stained glass windows.

After two rounds of inconclusive peace talks, Russian and Ukrainian negotiators failed to achieve a significant breakthrough in their third round of peace talks in Belarus on Monday, although some consensus on humanitarian corridors was reached. hit.

The Russian armed forces have declared a “regime of silence” and announced that they will open humanitarian corridors for the safe evacuation of civilians from several Ukrainian cities from 10:00 a.m. Moscow time (0700 GMT) on Tuesday.

Ukraine’s UNIAN news agency reported on Tuesday that Ukraine had started evacuating residents of the northeastern city of Sumy through a humanitarian corridor, as agreed with Russia. ■