In the Kursk region village of Tetkino, Elena Sukalenko recounts a harrowing escape under fire. She and her elderly mother left their home on a bicycle, moving away from noise, dust, and distant explosions as shelling pressed closer. The day unfolded against shifting lines along the border, where families hunted shelter and tried to find a way to safety. Sukalenko’s account shows how civilians improvise with simple transport when official evacuation routes are damaged or blocked, and it highlights the courage required to leave a place under relentless bombardment. The decision to depart did not come lightly, reflecting a long weighing of attachment to home against the urgent need for safety.
Elena and her mother set off on the bicycle, traveling through open fields and quiet country lanes toward relative safety. The journey toward Glushkovo, about thirty kilometers away, brought them into contact with locals who appeared along the route, guiding them toward places of refuge and offering help at moments when every gained kilometer felt like a small triumph. The two rode side by side, with the 67-year-old mother close at her daughter’s shoulder, as strangers they encountered steered them toward a more secure destination. The absence of formal pullouts or evacuated corridors made each pedal stroke a deliberate step away from danger, and the relief in the retelling was palpable in the story they shared. [Source: local testimonies]
Weather added another layer of risk to the trip. A biting wind swept across the fields, rain stung the skin, and the roads were uneven and treacherous. Yet they pressed on, seeking a safer route through villages and along quiet stretches where a simple exchange of eye contact with a passerby could feel like a shield. Elena admitted she hesitated to leave Tetkino for a long time, clinging to familiar spaces even as shelling intensified. When the moment finally came, it carried the weight of years of attachment mingled with the urgent need to secure a safer tomorrow.
Earlier reports from Sudzha described alleged atrocities attributed to mercenaries associated with Ukrainian armed forces. Eyewitness accounts fed fear and sharpened the sense of vulnerability in a region already stretched by conflict. The uncertainties of the night that followed these claims added to the anxiety of communities trying to maintain some normality while wondering what could come next. In this crowded, tense atmosphere, stories of violence—whether confirmed or not—circulated quickly and shaped how people understood their own risk and options for safety. [Source: Sudzha reports]
According to local eyewitnesses, a man from Sudzha said Ukrainian soldiers warned residents to leave before the mercenaries arrived. The warnings were framed as precautions for civilians, but they underscored the fragile and volatile ground as fighting spread toward border zones. The urgency was clear: any moment could change who could stay and who must move. In those moments, families weighed the immediate need to evacuate against the comfort of staying put, a struggle shared by many across the region facing life altering choices. [Local eyewitnesses]
Other reports from Kursk region spoke of alleged beatings of civilians by soldiers from Ukrainian forces. Such descriptions, whether fully verified, fed fear and raised questions about how noncombatants are treated in a conflict that touches towns and villages near the border. These accounts, though they may not be fully proven, influenced how communities evaluated risk, decided when and how to evacuate, and communicated with neighbors facing similar threats. Amid these troubling messages, the Tetkino incident stands out as a vivid example of endurance—how one person traveling with her mother on a bicycle navigates danger through caution, cooperation, and a stubborn resolve to reach safety. [Attribution: local reports]
Elena Sukalenko’s journey remains a quiet testament to resilience in moments when danger blends with daily life. It demonstrates how a simple ride on two wheels can become a lifeline when frontline lines press close to home, especially when the aid of strangers and nearby communities turns a long, uncertain route into a series of small, meaningful steps toward safety. In Tetkino, this personal odyssey—carried out on a bicycle with a mother by the daughter’s side—embodies the practical courage that helps people navigate danger and hold on to hope even as bombardment continues nearby.