Residents of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region are abandoning long-held homes after single, devastating blows make remaining impossible, part of a steady exodus that has continued since Russia’s full-scale invasion more than three years ago.
For many, evacuation begins with one defining blast — the strike that reduces a house to rubble or leaves wounds that make staying intolerable. Sixty-nine-year-old Tetiana Zaichikova said she and others in her town held on for as long as they could, waiting through rounds of diplomacy that they hoped would bring peace. "We kept hoping. We waited for every round of negotiations. We thought somehow they would reach an agreement in our favor, and we could stay in our homes," Zaichikova said, bearing bruises and hematomas across her face.
The Donetsk region, larger than the European country of Slovenia and roughly the size of Massachusetts, has been the epicenter of heavy fighting for years. Russian forces now control about 70% of the oblast, and towns that once bustled with civilian life are increasingly empty as front lines shift and attacks intensify. Residents who remain often do so until the danger reaches a level that prevents even military and police convoys from entering to resupply or evacuate.
Evacuations in the region have continued without interruption since the invasion began more than three years ago, and the pattern of departure is shaped by both immediate violence and the slow erosion of services and security. Some people cling to hopes of a political settlement — hopes in part stoked by international peace efforts, including initiatives led by U.S. President Donald Trump — but those efforts have not produced a breakthrough that allows widespread returns.
Local officials and residents report that the decision to leave is often agonizing and incremental. Some wait weeks or months after nearby strikes, holding on to the belief that the fighting will subside. Others depart abruptly after a single incident that destroys a home or kills a neighbor. Humanitarian agencies say prolonged exposure to shelling, loss of utilities and the collapse of local markets accelerate departures even in places that have not been directly hit.
The movement of civilians out of Donetsk contributes to broader displacement across eastern and southern Ukraine. International and Ukrainian aid organizations have repeatedly warned that persistent front-line combat, coupled with limited access for relief workers, exacerbates hardship for those who remain. The most vulnerable — the elderly, the injured and those with limited mobility — face the greatest obstacles to leaving and often depend on ad hoc evacuations or assistance from neighbors.
As towns empty, the physical and social fabric of communities is being altered. Schools, shops and municipal services that once defined daily life are shuttered or destroyed, compounding the difficulty of returning even when a lull in fighting occurs. For those who depart, the path ahead is uncertain: relocation within Ukraine, seeking accommodation with relatives or, for some, emigrating abroad.
Officials in Kyiv and local administrators have urged civilians to leave active combat zones where possible and have coordinated organized evacuations when security conditions allow. Yet many residents say fear, a lack of information, or the absence of viable destinations keeps them rooted until a blast or a creeping loss of basic needs finally forces them to go.
The exodus from Donetsk underscores the war’s continuing toll on civilians and the challenges of reversing displacement without sustained reductions in violence and guaranteed access for humanitarian assistance. Until such conditions emerge, Ukrainian towns struck by repeated bombardment are likely to remain emptied of the populations that once sustained them.