THE NATIONAL UNION OF
JOURNALISTS OF UKRAINE
Sergiy Tomilenko, the President of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), shared on Facebook a personal story about the closest russian drone to his home. At midnight, the drone hit the Domino business center in Podil – just 200 meters from the journalist’s house.
“The creaking of glass underfoot. This unpleasant sound has been with me since morning,” the journalist describes the consequences of the attack. The blast wave shattered the window at the entrance to his house; the glass on the stairs flew out. Tomilenko himself is unharmed, and the apartment is intact. “The cats are a little scared,” he adds.
On the way to the Union of Journalists’ office, Sergiy Tomilenko walked through the “wounded Podil” – an atmospheric historical district of Kyiv that suffered significant damage that night.
In the broken windows of the Ethnodom – a famous Ukrainian embroidery shop on Verkhnii Val Street – embroidered shirts hang “like in an unplanned showcase”. The establishment recently completed renovations, only to be without glass again.
The Domino business center suffered the most—a building that, after reconstruction, became an architectural landmark of the district. “Such beauty was destroyed…” – an elderly Kyiv woman said quietly, passing by. Now the building has “bare” floors, broken pipes, and a burnt-out security booth.
On Shchekavytska Street, a drone hit the roof of the building where the newsroom of the online media GORDON is located. Opposite is the old Podil synagogue. The smell of dust and ash remained.
Sergiy Tomilenko noted that although this destruction is nothing compared to what he saw in frontline cities, “when an explosion is two hundred meters from your house in Kyiv, it becomes personal.” “It’s like a push: are you doing everything you need to do right now? Have you relaxed?”
The head of the NUJU emphasizes that Ukrainian business, which during the war years renovated offices and opened stores, demonstrates faith in life. And faith in Victory.
“So we clean up broken glass, help each other, put on an embroidered shirt from the Ethnodom – and again go out to meet the day. We are at home. We are invincible. And – journalists are important!”
NUJU Information Service
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