As conflict reignites, a Ukrainian family knows all too well 'the collateral damage of war'

This story contains details some readers may find disturbing.

These are fearful times for many Ukrainians, none more so than Alla Nzynhykovska.

The sound of shelling from pro-Russian forces has kept her and her family up through the night as their hometown of Mariupol, just 50 kilometres from the Russian border, has been an early target of attack.

“It is very close and that makes life a little bit scary,” she tells W5.

Nzynhykovska knows better than most the horrific toll military conflict can have even on civilians not directly engaged in battle. She learned that terrible lesson on Aug. 24, 2015. At that time, Russia in and Ukrainian forces were once again at odds and a Ukrainian military training base was near their then home in the village of Volodarske.

”There was ammunition all around,” says Nzynhykovska.

Her two young sons, Mykola, 11, and Danyo, 4, were part of a group of kids roaming the neighbourhood. Mykola came across an undetonated grenade and went to show it to his friends. Some playful jostling ensued and he stepped on it. The grenade went off.

Danyo was killed instantly. Miraculously, Mykola survived, but he was unrecognizable. His body was filled with shrapnel and torn apart.

The ensuing months were filled with little but grief and pain for Mykola. He underwent a series of surgeries and other medical procedures. The blast had left him a triple amputee -- losing his limbs, only his left arm remained intact.

In October 2015, Mykola, with Nzynhykovska at his side, arrived by ambulance at the 250-year-old military hospital in the heart of Kyiv. More doctors, more drugs and more procedures would ensue, but this would mark a turning point in his recovery.

A Canadian medical team was on hand, taking part in a mission to treat Ukrainian soldiers, and that team was determined to help Mykola.

“I remember taking care of him and meeting him for the first time in the examining chair. And it was quite the sight to behold,” remembers Winnipeg anesthesiologist Adrian Hawaleska. “Pure evidence of the collateral damage of war. All right there in front of you in a little boy.”

Doctors removed shrapnel from his face and repaired the hole in his skull.

“I think it was just fortuitous we were there. We were there in the right place and the right time and we could do something about it,” says Dr. Hawaleshka.

They weren’t, however, equipped for the more extensive surgery he needed on his limbs. That job would fall to doctors in Montreal.

Word of Mykola’s plight quickly spread to Canada. The Canada-Ukraine Foundation and the Shriners Hospital for Children in Montreal joined forces and arranged to fly Mykola and Nzynhykovska to Canada, where he would receive a year of treatment and rehabilitation.

The Canada-Ukraine Foundation and the Shriners Hospital for Children in Montreal joined forces and arranged to fly Mykola and Nzynhykovska to Canada, where he would receive a year of treatment and rehabilitation (W5)In the wake of yet another surgery, he was fitted with prosthetic legs and undertook the grueling task of learning to walk again.

“The Canadian prosthetics were magnificent,'' recalls Mykola. “I remember the first time I was able to walk on my prosthetics. It felt like my legs had reappeared.’’

In 2017, the family returned to Ukraine where Mykola has garnered attention for his exploits as a swimmer. In 2019, he swam 500 metres across Kyiv’s Dnipro River faster than any amputee previously, putting his name into local record books.

For a while, he aspired to compete for Ukraine in the Paralympics, but the pandemic has put those dreams on hold. Most pools in Ukraine have been shut down, so these days he stays active by working out twice a week.

He long ago outgrew his Canadian prosthetics and the replacements simply don’t fit as well, so he usually relies on his wheelchair to get around, even though much of Mariupol isn’t wheelchair accessible.

Mykola long ago outgrew his Canadian prosthetics so he usually relies on his wheelchair to get around (W5)“There are places you can’t access with a wheelchair at all," says Nzynhykovska. “In Ukraine it’s very difficult to be a disabled person. Many disabled people just simply stay at home. They don’t go out. They don’t leave their homes.”

However, Mykola isn’t the type to simply sit at home. While the rest of his country may be looking to the future with fear and dread, he remains undaunted.

“In the spring I will turn 18, and new opportunities will open up. You need to find a job. Earn money and take care of your own needs. Get a car and all that. I’m going to continue my schooling and learn how to cook.”

It’s that kind of resilience that continues to inspire Dr. Hawaleshka.

“By any stretch of the imagination he has affected my life more than I have affected his. I remember him and will remember him forever. What an incredible young man.”