The building where Andriy Hryn, a journalist with the regional news outlet Novyny Kramatorskoho Rayonu (Donetsk oblast), lives, was damaged in a Russian shelling strike in Kramatorsk on 19 May, the journalist reported in a Facebook post and in a comment to Yulia Harkusha, the Institute of Mass Information representative in Donetsk oblast.
Hryn said that this was the fifth time his apartment had been damaged and the third time since the beginning of 2026. He added that he had lost count by now.
“Within 24 hours, on 25–26 April, my apartment was damaged twice by the occupiers targeting the city. Yesterday, 19 May, was the third time since the beginning of this year. For now, we are staying in Kramatorsk and continuing to perform our professional duties. But, to be honest, I am already considering options for myself, looking through ads. So far, the rent prices are, to put it mildly, frightening,” Andriy Hryn said in a comment to the IMI representative.
The journalist said that the local authorities were trying to help him, but since the Kramatorsk community has been under more intense fire lately, there has been a spike in eRecovery applications. There is physically no time to visit everyone, record the damage and draw up the paperwork, Hryn shared.
“Every day, more and more apartments get damaged. I personally submitted an application back in late March, when I was in the hospital recovering from a surgery, but the commission hasn’t processed it yet. Volunteers are helping with supplies for quick repairs, which improves the situation a little,” said Andriy Hryn.
The journalist said that his house had suffered severe damage. The photos he shared show that the wall slabs have shifted apart. Andriy Hryn hopes that the authorities will not expose the people to more danger.
“The only hope is that maybe the building will be declared uninhabitable. There are very large cracks in the apartments, the slabs have shifted apart significantly,” the journalist concluded.
As IMI reported, in March 2026, Andriy Hryn needed donations for lung tumor removal surgery.
Earlier, Kramatorsk-based journalists persuaded the authorities to install more anti-drone nets over the roads in Donetsk oblast. This happened after the Novyny Kramatorskoho Rayonu team appealed to the Ministry of Defense and to Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
