A Suspilne Zaporizhzhia film crew came under attack by Russian FPV drones in Kushuhum village (seven kilometres south of Zaporizhzhia city) where the media workers were documenting the aftermath 6 October shelling, Suspilne reports.
The reporters were targeted by Russian FPV drones within minutes of starting work. The crew was unable to leave the village for more than three hours.
The media workers managed to film several damaged houses and then had to take cover under trees and in bushes. One of the drones struck right next to their car.
“Now I recall us putting on our body armour before driving into Kushuhum with an ironic smile; us cracking a few dark jokes, and myself telling the team, ‘Let’s not get worked up, everything will be fine. We’ll get it done quickly and head back.’ But in the end, neither ‘quickly’ nor ‘getting it done’ went down as planned,” said Anastasia Potapenko, a Suspilne Zaporizhzhia correspondent.
She remarked that being completely prepared for this is impossible.
“Because it’s one thing when you hear a drone somewhere out there, in the distance. But when you hear them non-stop, when they circle and hover right over you and your colleagues, it’s a totally different level of fear. Nothing compares to it,” the media professional explained.
Suspilne Zaporizhzhia chief editor Alyona Natalukha said that the situation in the village had been much calmer just six months earlier. This time, the crew was simply unable to move, because people in body armour carrying a camera had become targets for the Russian forces.
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However, she added, correspondent Anastasia Potapenko, cameraman Maksym Savchuk, driver Oleksandr Denysenko, and safety staff Daniil Levchenko acted professionally.
“Situations like this are happening increasingly often. Working in the oblast under shelling means constant risk and an enormous psychological burden. In the midst of all this madness, my colleagues kept working. The boys shielded Nastia and supported one another. Anastasia and Maksym filmed comments and spoke to the camera about the situation. When the crew came back, we could see how emotionally difficult and frightening that shoot had been. I’m extremely grateful to the team that, despite everything, they choose to come to work every day and to head out into the countryside again and again, to show what the Russians are doing to our villages, and how people have been living in these conditions for four years now,” Alyona Natalukha remarked.
The company stressed that Suspilne’s film crews are equipped with body armour and first aid kits. The teams follow the rules and constantly monitor the situation to keep themselves safe. The company also organises safety training, allowing their staff to hone their first aid skills.
IMI’s Mediabaza Zaporizhzhia has become a temporary headquarters for the Suspilne Zaporizhzhia editing team due to Russian air strikes.