how the defenders of Mariupol undergo rehabilitation and change professions
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Cooperation with the “Heart of Azovstal” project of the marines became symbolic Yuriy Saika. The 28-year-old fighter lived for 4 months with a fragment of a shell from the “Hail” in the first layer of the heart – the pericardium. With serious injuries, only a month after losing his leg, in the spring of 2022, Yuri broke into the Azovstal plant, from which he was captured by the Russians along with other defenders. After returning to Ukraine, Yuri underwent repeated operations, the fragment from his heart was removed – and the former marine began the path to recovery and new realization.
Yuriy Saiko now recalls that the symbol of the heart was iconic from the very beginning of his military career. In 2016, Yuriy, who immediately after graduating from school fought in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, was initially refused to join the ranks of the Armed Forces due to an inappropriate cardiogram.
“The therapist said that with such a heart I would not be able to cope with the physical strain that would be in the army. I quarreled with him. I really wanted to join the army. My heart could withstand such strains that some people had never dreamed of. And two weeks later, a soldier called me and asked if I want to serve. We agreed to go to Kherson. And on April 29, 2016, I signed a contract with the Armed Forces. Then, according to my relationship, I was redirected to the 36th Marine Corps Brigade.”, – says Yuriy.
Marine Yuri Saiko defended Mariupol from the first days of the full-scale invasion of Russia. On March 10, during the enemy’s attack on the Ilyich factory, the defender received multiple shrapnel wounds to the soft tissues of the chest and the back of the head, as well as a leg injury, which the doctors had to amputate.
On March 16, an aerial bomb landed on the territory of the hospital where Yuriy was lying after the operation. It was on that day that the medics tried to find out exactly where in the chest there was a fragment of a projectile that threatened the soldier’s life.
“I was lying naked, covered in tubes, I had just been brought from an X-ray. When I was “coming in”, the window frame fell right on top of me. On adrenaline, I jumped up and took the crutches of my roommate with the call sign Mongol, who would not be able to hold them, because in he had amputated hands. I even forgot about the tubes then – nothing hurt. I left the ward into the corridor and fell – Ptashka picked me up under her wing (Kateryna Polishchuk – Ukrainian poetess, paramedic, defender of “Azovstal” – ed.) and lowered her into the basement,” the fighter recalls.
Instead of thoughts about evacuation, he was preoccupied with his wife’s gift – a razor that remained in his bag. Adds with gratitude: “The bird ran under fire for this razor – took it and brought it to me.”
Until the beginning of April, Yuri Saiko, together with other patients and doctors, was at “Azovmash”. Due to the approach of the enemy, the mobile hospital was transferred from one bunker to another. And already on April 9, Yuriy’s unit received an order to break through to large land. However, at that time, the fighters could not leave Mariupol due to the attack of the Russians and shelling with phosphorus – 20 people were trapped, from which they were rescued by the driver of the evacuation truck. Thus, Yuriy Saik and other soldiers, most of whom had severe injuries, were taken to the Azovstal plant.
“We managed to break through in broad daylight without firing a single shot. It was as if something was constantly guarding us. Before that, another column came under heavy machine-gun fire – we shot back,” Yuriy recalls.
The seriously wounded were supposed to be taken from “Azovstal” to the Dnipro, but the helicopters could not fly due to enemy fire. So Yuriy, together with other defenders, remained at the combine – until his exit from “Azovstal” on May 20, 2022. He recalls that opinions during his stay at the position were different, and the fighting spirit helped to maintain hopes for the Turkish ship (in May 2022, the Turkish authorities discussed with the President of Ukraine Zelensky the possibility of evacuating the defenders of Azovstal by sea, however, as the Turkish spokesman reported, Russia did not agree to this – ed).
“They thought that after all, someone would come to an agreement – and we would be evacuated to a third country. There was no more hope. We only relied on ourselves. At Azovstal, there was a fight – we no longer had an exit to the top – in general, there was an entrance and exit from tunnel. And there was already an Orkvian “bird” hanging over every exit. I didn’t need medical help then. I went to the girls once every three days – they just smeared it and re-taped it with a plaster,” says Yuriy Saiko.
From “Azovstal” Yuriy left as part of the second group of defenders. He shares that then he realized how much the Russians were afraid of the “Azovs”. Despite the nonsensical question – “where are the other 10,000 foreign mercenaries” – the defenders felt the fear of the enemy.
“When we were captured, I found out that they even treated us with respect. They were afraid of us. Even later, my comrades told me that the orcs continued to look for me, showed me a photo, called my call sign, and asked who and where they last saw me. Maybe because during the break-in to Azovstal, he lost his backpack, which was signed – there were flags inside. Maybe because they found out that he was in the Right Sector. But all of our people, as one, said that I was 200,” says Yuriy .
He recalls that in Olenivka, where he was held captive by the Russians along with other seriously wounded soldiers, it was the most difficult thing not to lose a sense of reality. The enemies tried to break the faith of the defenders and told that all the largest cities had already been captured: “The Orcs said that Russian gas is already flowing in Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Odesa”.
Yurii remembers that when they heard “gather your people” after almost a month and a half in captivity, they thought differently. It is said that at that time the captives’ thoughts were mostly about food and freedom, but when there was hope for an exchange, it was very scary to lose it.
In the morning, after spending the night in a 4-person cell, 26 Ukrainians were put on a bus and taken to Donetsk. Yuriy says that there were different opinions on the road: what was being taken for exchange, and what was for death.
“We were taken by an ordinary minibus from Donetsk – with a schedule, a traffic map, a fare. We stayed in Vasylivka for an hour. A collaborator Kyril came, who served with us at “Desna”, and then switched to the Russian side. He says: “That’s all, they refuse you.” Then he turned back: “I’m just kidding. Now wait another 10 minutes – yours and ours will call – and you’ll go,” says Yuriy.
The first Ukrainian flag was seen in Vasylivka. It hung upside down – a sign of a country at war. When a Ukrainian military man came to the soldiers, they couldn’t hold back their emotions.
“On the bus I found a man in a pixel and a Corsair armored car – that’s the first thing I saw – our ZSUShny armored vest. And he said: “Glory to Ukraine!” – and we all: “Glory to the heroes!” Everyone had tears,” Yuriy recalls.
Then the soldier wrote down the nature of each person’s wound – and the released prisoners were immediately sent to different hospitals. Yuriy was admitted to the regional hospital in Zaporizhzhia, where a fragment of the first layer of the heart was removed.
“When they took an X-ray, the surgeon said: ‘I’m surprised how you lived with him for 4 months, doing exercises on horizontal bars, being constantly hungry.’ .
From Zaporizhzhia, the marine was transferred to a hospital in Novy Sanzhary, and from there he was taken by helicopter to Lviv, where Yuria was re-amputed before a leg prosthesis.
“In Mariupol, when they operated, there were 2 surgeons for 12 wounded people. They did everything very quickly. They cut and sewed up as they saw fit. They did their best just to save my life,” Yuriy recalls.
He shares that he was worried before reamputation, but his wife motivated and supported him: “She came to see me – the doctor allowed it. She stayed – she slept right on the bed with me. She is my biggest support”.
Yuriy underwent prosthetics in the Lviv region, in the city of Velikiy Lyubin. The defender emphasizes that he has now fully recovered and is leading a full-fledged lifestyle.
“I remember my handicap – that I don’t have a leg – only in the morning, when I put on the prosthesis, and in the evening, when I take it off. And if I’m already tired of walking, then it starts to bother me, I just want to sit down,” says the defender.
He says that he got in touch with the NGO “Heart of Azovstal”, which he heard about from an acquaintance, when he thought about a new profession. Then Yuri needed a laptop – he got it from the project in a digital box. This is provided to the defenders of Mariupol as part of the “Heart of Azovstal. Return” program. The box helps in comfortable adaptation after captivity and, in addition to the laptop, contains a smart watch, Bluetooth headphones and a computer mouse.
“I started keeping in touch with Heart of Azovstal. The operators call me steadily once a month – they offer legal and psychological help,” says Yuriy.
He shares that he is not working with psychologists now. At this stage, communication with siblings and relatives is needed.
“The best rehabilitation is a loved one next to you and a roof over your head,” says Yuriy Saiko.
In March, the couple will move to a new house, which the fighter received from the NGO “Heart of Azovstal”. According to the “Home” program, defenders who have the I or II group of disabilities, who have lost or do not have their own housing in the controlled territory of Ukraine, can get their own apartment.
“When I sent the documents, the NGO themselves called and asked in which city I wanted to get housing. I wanted in Mykolaiv. Within a week, they said that they couldn’t find it there – and offered Odesa. I didn’t refuse. Moreover, I don’t have my own housing at all – I don’t care where it would be. And in Odessa – the sea. We signed the papers, then received the keys,” says the 28-year-old veteran.
In addition, the defender chose a new profession. Now he is studying to become a web designer under the “Heart of Azovstal. Future” program.
“I found out that Heart of Azovstal cooperates with IT schools that train former military personnel. At that time, I was about to resign from the Armed Forces. Since January, I have been studying to become a web designer. I pass projects and homework for 100 points. I like it. In the future, I will develop websites , mobile applications,” the man says.
It is shared that support and plans for the future inspire and give strength. Soon the couple will move to Odessa. Yuriy’s wife, who works as a neurologist, just gets a job at a local hospital.
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