Residents of a devastated Chernihiv ponder their future after a Russian siege ends

https://www.npr.org/2022/04/13/ [login to see] /chernihiv-ukraine-russia-siege
On a cold and rainy Saturday, Ivan Mekshun and his brother, Volodymyr, were digging through a heap of wood and metal debris that, a month ago, had been their home and livelihood.

"I don't know what to say. Everything is damaged," Ivan Mekshun said, shrugging as he tossed away board after board.

The Mekshun brothers had the bad fortune of living outside of Chernihiv, the northeastern Ukrainian city that was besieged by Russian forces for a month before they abruptly withdrew in early April.

For weeks, the city was bombarded daily. More than 200 people died, officials say, and hundreds more were wounded. Villages on the outskirts of town, like the Mekshuns' home of Novoselivka, were reduced to rubble.

The Mekshuns had evacuated to a nearby village when the Russians rolled in. They came back last week to find their house and garage ruined.

Their only source of income, they said, was running a small-time auto repair business out of their garage. They had returned to look for tools and supplies, anything they could salvage.