The woman’s mission is simple: she goes shopping, and she won’t be discouraged. Svitlana Zhyvaga just needs to cross a bridge.
But this is not just a bridge. Residents living nearby said it was mined. Ukrainian soldiers warned others that the bridge had been shelled and was likely to be fired again. But last Friday morning, Ms. Zhyvaga, 54, woke up just before sunrise, climbed a ladder and crossed what is now one of the world’s most dangerous stretches of river.
“I am really a thrill seeker,” Ms. Zhyvaga said.
The bridge, or what remains of it, spans about 250 feet wide of the Siversky Donets River, separating the cities of Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk in eastern Ukraine. It would have been completely impassable without a few ladders connecting the collapsed section to the road above.
Ukrainian officials say that in recent days, three bridges connecting the two cities have been destroyed, including Ms. Zhyvaga’s, leaving Ukrainian forces stranded as they battle to hold their own piece of territory. shrunk in Sievierodonetsk before the advance of Russian troops.
