SUMY: At a funeral home in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy, Svitlana Ostapenko paced around as she prepared the dead for their final journey.
After five years of working in the funeral home, she was used to seeing dead bodies, but the growing number of dead — including young people from Russia’s invasion — was starting to overwhelm even her.
“Death doesn’t discriminate between young and old,” the funeral director told AFP, breaking down in tears.
Ukraine’s funeral workers, who are living through the war themselves and have been repeatedly exposed to violent death throughout Russia’s invasion launched in early 2022, are shouldering a mounting emotional toll while supporting grieving families.
What’s more, Ostapenko’s hometown of Sumy near the Russian border, has come under bombardment throughout the invasion but advancing Russian troops have brought the fighting to as close as 20 kilometers (12 miles) away.
