The elderly, sick and disabled are unable to escape bombs falling on Ukraine

Every family I spoke to told me they were most afraid for those who have absolutely no way to look after themselves or get to safety, either inside or outside their homes, writes Bel Trew

The most vulnerable people in Mariupol, which has been under siege for a month, are those who are not mobile (Bel Trew)

The elderly, the disabled and the sick who cannot get to their basements in the besieged city of Mariupol are burning alive in their beds when the shelling starts. There are also reports that some have frozen to death, as temperatures have dropped as low as -5C while residents have been without heating or electricity for several weeks.

Others, I was told, are dying of hunger and thirst since no humanitarian supplies can get into the strategic coastal city that is in the eye of Vladimir Putin’s ferocious storm.

And so the most vulnerable people in the city, which has been under siege for a month, are those who are not mobile. They cannot get to the shelters, they cannot move to the safer neighbourhoods, they cannot make the terrifying dash to find water from nearby wells and springs. Crucially, they are unable to tackle the hellish obstacle course to get to the safety of other parts of the country.