Lower thirds:
0:03  Report by / Jan-Philipp Scholz
0:16  Tetyana Petrivna / Resident
1:10  Hanna Oleksandrivna / Survivor
1:30  Jan-Philipp Scholz / DW correspondent, Mychajlo-Lukasheve
2:00  "Balu" / Soldier
3:30  Natalia Hutaruk / Teacher
4:09  Tetyana Petrivna / Resident

Script:

For Tetyana Petrivna, the threat from the sky comes a little closer every day. Her town lies inside  a so-called kill zone – an extremely dangerous area, even for civilians.

SOT Tetyana Petrivna, resident, Ukr.
"We don't sleep at night anymore. Something could strike at any minute .We can never feel safe. We lie awake with our mobile phones in our hands, constantly checking where drones and glide bombs are flying."

Tetyana's house on the outskirts of the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia is around  30 kilometers from the front line. In the past, the most dangerous areas typically extended only 10 to 15 km behind the front. But now even basic Russian surveillance and kamikaze drones can fly much further. Many use technology that makes them impossible for Ukrainians to detect.

A few weeks ago, a drone  struck Tetyana's mother-in-law's house just down the street. The 88-year-old is now living in Tetyana's guest room.

SOT Hanna Oleksandrivna, survivor, Ukr.
"My soul stayed in my destroyed house. They only saved my body. Now I just sit around here every day."

Tetyana's grandchildren also live just a few minutes away. But she hasn't seen them for months. The constant drone threat has made even a short car ride life-threatening. 

PTC Jan-Philipp Scholz, DW correspondent, Mychajlo-Lukasheve, Engl.
"It is very quiet here - but this is one of the reasons (why) it feels so unpleasant. It feels as if something is constantly watching you in the sky. It's hard to imagine how people still living here face this danger every day."

In recent months, the Ukrainian military has significantly expanded its drone defense capabilities in the region. Many units now hide in fields and forests surrounding the regional capital Zaporizhzhia.

SOT "Balu", soldier, Ukr.
"If something is in the air, we gather immediately. Everyone knows their role. We quickly set everything up and see if the target keeps flying towards us."

Their detectors repeatedly sound the alarm, reporting drones that are still out of range of their interceptor systems. It has become a constant race for technical superiority in the sky, the commander explains.

SOT "Balu", soldier, Ukr.
"I think all of this will even continue to accelerate. And unfortunately, it will become increasingly intense because Russia is constantly acquiring new knowledge, too. They are continuously developing their drone technology."

Many residents fear the kill zone is creeping ever closer to Zaporizhzhia’s city centre. In response, regional authorities are moving more and more services underground: administrative offices, cultural events - and even schools  - now operate in underground shelters.

For teacher Natalia HutAruk, her daily walk to school takes her past destroyed buildings and then eight meters underground. She has been teaching English here for several months. Deep underground, her students feel safe – unlike above ground.  

SOT Natalia Hutaruk, teacher, Engl.
"It's impossible to accustom to this terror because it happens during the days and during the nights. When you see that the students are a little bit frustrated, it means that they didn't sleep. It's possible that they didn't sleep for a few weeks ((because during the air alerts at night, some of them prefer to go to shelters or are online with their friends."))

Tetyana shares that exhaustion. She says she has not slept more than two or three hours this year. And she is now even considering a possibility she once ruled out - that the increasingly brutal warfare may make her life here impossible.

SOT Tetyana Petrivna, resident, Ukr.
"But where could we go? Nobody is waiting for us. We would have to rent an apartment, and rents are very expensive. I have no idea. It's all just terrible."

Tetjana has already begun to prepare: She has moved half her furniture to a place far from the kill zone. Maybe, her family will soon follow.

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