NOTE

RULES OF BEHAVIOUR DURING SHELLING AND BOMBING

HOW TO FIND OUT ABOUT AN AIR RAID ALERT?

In order to draw the public's attention to civil defence warning signals, electric sirens are activated, which are duplicated by long beeps of other sound devices of entities and vehicles.

The signal sounds for 2-3 minutes.

ON THE STREET

If you hear the whistle of a projectile, and after 2-3 seconds – an explosion, immediately fall to the ground.

Do not panic: the very fact that you hear the sound of flight means that the projectile flew far enough away from you, and those seconds before the explosion only confirmed a sufficiently safe distance. However, the next projectile will fly closer to you, so quickly and carefully look around: where can you hide more securely?

If there is a ledge (even a sidewalk, a curb – right next to it), a ditch, or any recess in the ground – use this natural protection. If there is a concrete structure nearby, lie down next to it.
It is necessary to lie down to reduce the chance of getting fragments. All this will not help if a direct hit, but will reduce the chances of a shrapnel wound. Fragments fly up and tangentially. If a person is standing, they are more likely to be in their way than if they are lying down.

IN CITY TRANSPORT

If the first explosions caught you on the road in your own car, do not expect that you will be able to quickly escape from shelling by car: you will never know in which direction the fire will move, and whether shelling will begin, for example, from mortars. In addition, the gas tank of your car adds a dangerous risk of burning. Therefore, once again: stop the car immediately and seek for a shelter as soon as possible.

In case you are caught in a minibus, trolleybus or tram by shelling, you should immediately stop the transport, run away from the road in the direction of buildings and structures and lie down on the ground. Look around and try to find a more reliable shelter nearby. You should run across with short quick throws immediately after the next explosion.

Do not hide near a car (bus, trolleybus, etc.)!

If they shoot, first at the car, and if they hit it, it will explode along with the person. It is necessary to climb out, preferably from the opposite side from the shelling, and crawl further away, then lie down.

NOT SUITABLE FOR SHELTER:

• entrances of any buildings, even small outbuildings.

In general, you should run at least 30-50 metres away from high-rise/apartment buildings;

• places under various machinery (for example, under a truck or under a bus);
• ordinary basements of buildings (weak ceilings, lack of emergency exits, ventilation, etc.). There is a great risk of being under massive debris. Overcrowding of such basements carries the risk of instant fire or smoke. 

You should never hide outside under the walls of modern buildings!

Current concrete "boxes" do not have the slightest margin of strength and easily crumble (or "stack") not only from a direct hit, but also from a strong blast wave: there is a great risk of landslides and collapses. 

You cannot hide under the walls of offices and shops: a lot of glass will fall from the blast wave from above; it is no less dangerous than metal projectile fragments.

Sometimes people instinctively hide among any stacks, in places filled with containers, filled with boxes, building materials, etc. (a subconscious reflex comes into play: to hide so as not to see anything).

This mistake is dangerous because there may be flammable objects and substances around you: there is a risk of being in the middle of a sudden fire.

Sometimes people jumped into the river, pond, fountain, etc. out of fear. The explosion of a bomb or projectile in water, even at a considerable distance, is very dangerous: strong water hammer and, as a result, severe contusion.

YOU SHOULD HIDE IN THE FOLLOWING PLACES:

• in a specially equipped bomb shelter (if you're lucky). This bomb shelter differs from an ordinary basement in that it has a thick, reliable ceiling overhead, a ventilation system, and the presence of two (or more) exits to the surface;
• in an underground passage;
• in any ditch, trench or pit;
• in a wide drain pipe under the road (you should not climb too deep, a maximum of 3-4 metres);
• along a high border or the foundation of a fence;
• in a very deep basement under the capital buildings of the old building;
• in an underground vegetable storage, silage pit, etc.;
• in the inspection pit of an open (in the air) garage or service station;
• in the manholes next to your house, it's a very good hiding place. (It is important that it is a sewage or water supply – in no case a gas line);
• in pits-"funnels" that remained from previous shelling or air raids.

In the worst case scenario – when there's no cover in sight that you can dash to – just drop to the ground and lie down with your head in your hands.

The vast majority of projectiles and bombs explode in the upper layer of soil or asphalt, so fragments at the moment of explosion fly at a height of at least 30-50 cm above the surface.

GENERAL RULE: Your shelter should be at least minimally deep and, at the same time, it should stay away from structures that can fall on you from above with a direct hit, or that can catch fire.

Ideal protection is given by a trench or ditch (similar to a trench) with a depth of 1-2 metres, in an open place.

Hiding in the shelter, lie down and wrap your hands around your head. Open your mouth – this will save you from concussion when a projectile or bomb explodes at close range.

Don not panic. Occupy your psyche with something. You can count the explosions: know that after the 100th explosion at the most, the shelling will definitely end. You can try to mentally count the minutes.

First, it's distracting.

Secondly, this way you will be able to navigate the situation: artillery fire lasts a maximum of twenty minutes; an airstrike is much less. Nowadays, there are no long bombardments, large groups of bombers are not used.

IN THE HOUSE

If the house has a basement – go down to the basement.

If there is no basement – go down to the lower floors. The lower the better. Ideally, everyone should be on the first floor.

Find the innermost room in advance, the more concrete around, the better (find the load-bearing walls), if all the rooms are outside, go to the landing.

In no case do not be in front of the windows.

If you know from which side the shelling is being conducted, then choose the farthest room from the opposite side.

In the place that will be chosen, sit on the floor next to the wall – the lower a person is when a projectile hits, the more chances that he/she will not be hit by a fragment. In any case, one should not stay opposite the windows. Windows can be equipped with sofa cushions (large, dense, but better with sandbags), closed with massive furniture, but not empty (stuffed with sandbags or things, but tightly). It is better than unprotected windows and glass.

IN THE CELLAR

Cellar in private houses – one should take into account that it can collapse. Therefore, you should leave a large, conspicuous poster in the house in a prominent place:

"During the bombing we are in the cellar" and indicate where the cellar is.

Take phones, battery-powered radios, and water with you. Do not panic.

AFTER THE FIRING (BOMBARDMENT) IS COMPLETED

When leaving the place of refuge, do not allow yourself to relax. Now all your attention should be focused on your feet.

Do not pick up any unfamiliar objects from the ground: an aerial bomb, rocket or projectile could be a cluster.

The warheads often burst when dropped, but can explode later, in the hands, at the slightest movement or touch.

All attention is on children and teenagers: don't let them lift anything from under their feet.