KremenchukMallEN.md

Natalia, luxoptics optometrist at the Amstor shopping center:
Source: https://war.obozrevatel.com/na-nas-upal-potolok-vse-byilo-v-porohe-i-dyimu-vyizhivshaya-v-tts-v-kremenchuge-rasskazala-o-terakte-rf-foto.htm

Amstor is a quite popular place, with many people. It has around 400 employees, and all of the shops were working. The parking lot was not as empty as seen in the video after the explosion - the cars immediately began to leave (after the attack).
Everyone pays attention to the air raid alarm to a different degree. In Amstor, the staff tries to go out, although, of course, not all of them, many feel it's hot outside and they aren't keen on running back and forth (ed.: there are multiple air raid sirens each day). Often, during an alarm, visitors asked the girls (at a coffee shop) to make coffee for them... They say that one of the baristas is in the hospital.
During each alarm when my colleagues did not want to go out, I said: “imagine if we go out and it saves our life." this phrase seemed pretty motivating, and we all went out.
Yesterday I came to work a little early (than usual). I grabbed a delicious coffee, entered the office, put on a new medical gown. The first alarm sounded. I try to always go out (so I went). The store administrator and I waited out the alarm and returned to work.
I had a client appointment for diagnosis. Afterwards, the next arrived: a pregnant young woman, with a small child in a stroller, and her husband. I did not want to conduct her diagnosis during the alarm, but I did nonetheless - everyone insisted, and we were all in the office (during the attack).
I remember the moment of the explosion. It was a bright flash, for a split second it seemed that it was an overvoltage of appliances, our lights seemingly began to shine brighter. Then suddenly everything went out, I heard a strong sound inside my head, fell to the floor under the drywall. Glass showcases were all around, so I remember being scared that the fragments would fly at us.
Suddenly, the ceiling had fallen right on us: lamps, vent ducts and air conditioners - everything that was above. I yelled at the girls to get on the floor. They were in shock, so I had to repeat ten times until they heard me. Everything was full of gunpowder, smoke and it was pitch black.
Don't know, how long it took us to regain our senses. There was almost nothing to breathe. The store was full of debris, I turned on the flashlight on my phone, and we moved to the exit. I tried to step over the fragments and debris that were under my feet.
Someone screamed loudly: “Natasha. Natasha!", we didn't know who was calling. I asked the girls if Natasha was among them (ed.: Natasha is the hame of the storyteller herself). We got up and started screaming. It turned out that the administrator called me, he could not get through to our office. A pregnant girl slipped and fell on glass shards and pieces of the ceiling, injuring her legs. The rest were able to come out uninjured. I can't remember if I saw the second girl, I hope she went first.
There was a stroller stranded at the door, and I was too terrified to look into it. It was covered in shards and dust. I saw that it was empty. At the exit of our store, we met a dumbfounded security guard, who, to the question: “where is the exit?” - only for the fourth time was able to gather strength and answer. We ran to the emergency exit.
Further everything was relatively normal, mainly glass and water around. There was 4 centimeters of water on the floor. I don't know how long it took before we got outside. We inhaled a lot of gunpowder, I can still smell it today.
When I got outside, I saw a lot of smoke, many people running and shouting. Those who just got out were coughing. I was shocked. Most importantly, I saw a small child that we had (on an appointment), in the arms of his dad. I felt a bit better.
I turned to the administrator and said that I need to get back. Perhaps someone needs my help, I am a nurse by training. He grabbed my hand and said that rescuers and ambulances had already arrived, they could handle it.
I still dont have a grasp on everything, I feel empty. Yesterday there was adrenaline, shock, today awareness comes. All that is left of my workplace is this medical gown, everything else burned down.