Documenting the Russian-Ukrainian war, two Kharkiv photographers — Olga Kovalyova, project manager of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, and Vladislav Krasnoshchuk — came under enemy artillery fire on July 19, 2024, near the front line in the Toretsky area in the Donetsk region.
Photographers worked with the artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. On that day, the military fired several shots at the enemy and hid in a dungeon along with the journalists.
According to photographer Vladislav Krasnoshok, while they were in the dungeon together with the military, the enemy began firing back. He adds that 12 strikes hit the field near the position. The 13th hit straight into the dugout.
The photographer received a shrapnel wound to the axillary, supraclavicular areas of the thorax and arm, a fracture of the chest. She was hospitalized. Krasnoshok and the military received contusions.
“I have three shrapnel wounds. Two fragments were recovered from the body. All of them were near large vessels. However, doctors currently do not risk getting one fragment, so as not to damage something. At the moment, my right hand does not work completely,” says Olga.
The documentary filmmaker provided first aid to the military, then she was evacuated to the hospital.
Olga Kovaleva said that the military medic took her to the nearest field hospital, from there to the military hospital in Pokrovsk, then to a civilian hospital, where two of the three fragments were removed. Now she is in a hospital in Kharkov. At the moment, her condition is stable.
“All the others who were in the dungeon, fortunately, are targets. I was hurt because I was sitting in a corner near a pipe - an improvised hood, it was from it that fragments scattered. I was saved by a vest and a helmet. The fragments got where there was no protection, - explains Olga. “It's a pity that this happened on the first day of the business trip.”
The UAPF team wishes Olga Kovaleva a speedy recovery.
According to the informationInstitute of Mass InformationIn the two years since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has killed 70 media workers in Ukraine. Of these, 10 — while performing journalistic tasks, 47 died as combatants and 13 — as a result of Russian shelling or torture. In total, in the 10 years since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war, between 2014 and 2024, 77 Ukrainian and foreign media have died, 13 of them — while performing journalistic tasks. As of March 2024, 20 Ukrainian photographers have died in 10 years of Russian-Ukrainian war. Someone performed an editorial task, and someone went to the front as a volunteer.
The material was created with the support of The Fritt Ord Foundation.
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Documenting the Russian-Ukrainian war, two Kharkiv photographers — Olga Kovalyova, project manager of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, and Vladislav Krasnoshchuk — came under enemy artillery fire on July 19, 2024, near the front line in the Toretsky area in the Donetsk region.
Photographers worked with the artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. On that day, the military fired several shots at the enemy and hid in a dungeon along with the journalists.
According to photographer Vladislav Krasnoshok, while they were in the dungeon together with the military, the enemy began firing back. He adds that 12 strikes hit the field near the position. The 13th hit straight into the dugout.
The photographer received a shrapnel wound to the axillary, supraclavicular areas of the thorax and arm, a fracture of the chest. She was hospitalized. Krasnoshok and the military received contusions.
“I have three shrapnel wounds. Two fragments were recovered from the body. All of them were near large vessels. However, doctors currently do not risk getting one fragment, so as not to damage something. At the moment, my right hand does not work completely,” says Olga.
The documentary filmmaker provided first aid to the military, then she was evacuated to the hospital.
Olga Kovaleva said that the military medic took her to the nearest field hospital, from there to the military hospital in Pokrovsk, then to a civilian hospital, where two of the three fragments were removed. Now she is in a hospital in Kharkov. At the moment, her condition is stable.
“All the others who were in the dungeon, fortunately, are targets. I was hurt because I was sitting in a corner near a pipe - an improvised hood, it was from it that fragments scattered. I was saved by a vest and a helmet. The fragments got where there was no protection, - explains Olga. “It's a pity that this happened on the first day of the business trip.”
The UAPF team wishes Olga Kovaleva a speedy recovery.
According to the informationInstitute of Mass InformationIn the two years since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has killed 70 media workers in Ukraine. Of these, 10 — while performing journalistic tasks, 47 died as combatants and 13 — as a result of Russian shelling or torture. In total, in the 10 years since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war, between 2014 and 2024, 77 Ukrainian and foreign media have died, 13 of them — while performing journalistic tasks. As of March 2024, 20 Ukrainian photographers have died in 10 years of Russian-Ukrainian war. Someone performed an editorial task, and someone went to the front as a volunteer.
The material was created with the support of The Fritt Ord Foundation.
UAPP is an independent association of professional Ukrainian photographers, designed to protect their interests, support, develop and promote Ukrainian photography as an important element of national culture.
UAPP's activities span educational, social, research and cultural initiatives, as well as book publishing.
UAPP represents Ukrainian professional photography in the international photographic community and is an official member of the Federation of European Photographers (FEP) — an international organization representing more than 50,000 professional photographers in Europe and other countries around the world.
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