The Tragedy of the ‘Yellow Kitchen’ in Ukraine’s Apartment with Family Memories… dad to the sky [포착]

▲ An apartment complex in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Region, eastern Ukraine, where about 150 people were killed in an airstrike by Russian-made Kh-22 (X-22) cruise missiles on the 14th. A yellow kitchen is seen inside an apartment with one wall completely destroyed. 2023.1.17 Telegraph

While the number of casualties in the shooting of an apartment building in Ukraine has risen to about 150, the sad stories of the victims are also being conveyed one after another. On the 17th (local time), local media such as the Telegraph and BBC reported that famous boxing coach Mihailo Korenowski (39), who lived in the apartment, was killed in a missile attack.

On the 14th, a Russian-made Kh-22 (X-22) missile flew into an apartment complex in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Region, in the eastern part of the country. The missile landed vertically and the 9-story apartment building collapsed with a roar.

Boxing coach Korenowski was also at home with his family at the time of the attack. His wife and two daughters narrowly survived, but Korenowski lost his life.

The next day, the interior of the apartment where the Korenowskis lived was revealed. Inside the house, where one wall was completely torn off, a yellow kitchen with memories of these families stood out.

According to a video from the bereaved family, the Korenowski family celebrated their daughter’s birthday in this kitchen. The video showed Korenowski celebrating his daughter’s birthday with his wife. Her daughter, then four, smiled shyly after blowing out the candles on her cake. However, with the missile strike, the Korenowski family’s apartment was destroyed and their happiness was shattered.

The BBC said, “It is unclear when the video was filmed, but it is a stark reminder of how suddenly war can destroy our lives.”

“The apples Korenovski may have bought for the family are still on the kitchen table after the building has been destroyed,” BBC Russian correspondent Liza Vogt said. It could be,” he expressed regret.

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. His wife, Olga Korenowska, and other family members and acquaintances attended the funeral. 2023.1.17 Reuters Yonhap News

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. 2023.1.17 Suspilne

On the 14th, Russia launched a large-scale airstrike across Ukraine, and in the process, apartments in Dnipro City, eastern Dnipropetrovsk Province, collapsed, burying many residents, including children. Casualties were confirmed at about 150 people.

After 70 hours of search and rescue work, the Ukrainian Ministry of Emergency Situations rescued 39 people, including six children, as of 1:00 pm on the 17th, but said that 44 people, including five children, had died. In addition, 79 people, including 16 children, were injured. In addition, 43 people were reported missing, but 18 people were found dead, and the remaining 20 people are still missing.

Dnipro Mayor Boris Flatow said: “We combed through the wreckage to recover missing body parts, but to be honest, we know that some of the missing may have ‘evaporated’ at the same time as they were hit.” If the missing people whose bodies were not recovered are classified as dead, the total number of dead people is close to 70. Ten of the injured are in critical condition, so there is a possibility of additional deaths.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “The search and rescue operations and dismantling of the wreckage of the Dnipro apartment complex have been completed. About 1,700 people lived in the apartment. (With this attack) 230 houses were damaged, and 72 houses were completely destroyed.” “We are investigating Russia’s war crimes against Ukrainian civilians. We will definitely find out whoever was involved in the terrorism and hold them accountable.”

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. His wife, Olga Korenowska, and other family members and acquaintances attended the funeral. 2023.1.17 Reuters Yonhap News

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. His wife, Olga Korenowska, and other family members and acquaintances attended the funeral. 2023.1.17 Reuters Yonhap News

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. His wife, Olga Korenowska, and other family members and acquaintances attended the funeral. 2023.1.17 Reuters Yonhap News

▲ A funeral was held on the 17th for famous Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenowski, who was killed in a missile attack on his apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 14th. His wife, Olga Korenovska, is mourning her husband. 2023.1.17 Reuters Yonhap News

However, the Kremlin took an unusually official position that it had never targeted Dnipro apartments. “Russia does not attack residential buildings,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a telephone briefing with reporters. He added that the Ukrainian side also pointed to air defense missiles as the cause.

In fact, Oleksii Arestovich, an adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine, expressed his opinion immediately after the bombing that a Russian missile seemed to have fallen into an apartment building after being shot down by Ukraine’s air defense network. Afterwards, Russia used his remarks for propaganda.

The Ukrainian air force then responded that it did not have air defense equipment capable of shooting down the Russian-made Kh-22 missiles.

Air raid on Dnipro apartment complex in Ukraine
On the 14th (local time), a nine-story apartment building in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Region, Ukraine, collapsed in a missile attack. 2023.1.16
Dnipro regional press

▲ Rescue work is underway at the site of an air raid on an apartment building in Dnipro, Ukraine on the 17th (local time). 2023.1.17. UPI Yonhap News

When the controversy arose, Arestovitch apologized, saying he had received information from a credible source about the operation of the air defense network, and that he had only presented one hypothesis. He resigned on the 17th, saying he had “made a fundamental mistake”.

Arrestovich posted a resignation letter on Telegram, saying, “I sincerely apologize to the victims, their families, the residents of Dnipro, and everyone who was deeply hurt by my hasty and wrong judgment.”

Meanwhile, the Kh-22 (X-22), which was mobilized for the Dnipro apartment raid, is an air-to-surface and air-to-ship missile launched from strategic bombers such as the TU-22 and TU-95, and was originally developed for the purpose of attacking the US Navy fleet.

In July of last year, Russia also shot Kh-22s at residential areas in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odessa, killing at least 18 people. In June of the same year, it fired the missile at the Kremenchuk shopping mall in Poltava, central Ukraine, which had up to 1,000 customers and employees, killing 19 people.

Reporter Kwon Yoon-hee