A Ukrainian teenager who was found alive on her 19th birthday in the rubble of a home destroyed by a Russian missile attack is now fighting for her life in hospital after losing an eye in the bombing.
Anna Kotova was pulled from the rubble by firefighters combing the destroyed building for survivors after the deadly attack in the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Saturday.
Kotova, who was celebrating her 19th birthday when the rocket hit her apartment building, suffered a series of horrific injuries and is being treated in the intensive care unit of a Dnipro hospital, where doctors removed her eye.
A harrowing photo shows Kotova lying in a hospital bed – her face unrecognizable due to the cuts and burns that obscure her face.
The rest of her body, including her neck, chest and head, is covered in bandages as doctors try to contain any risk of infection.
Anna Kotova (pictured) was pulled from the rubble by firefighters combing the destroyed building for survivors after the deadly attack in the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Saturday
Harrowing images show Kotova lying in a hospital bed – her face unrecognizable due to the cuts and burns covering her features
Rescuers from the State Rescue Service of Ukraine operate on January 15 at the scene of a missile attack in Dnipro
Kovota, who posted pictures and videos of herself smiling in a light blue ball gown to Instagram just a few months ago, is now facing months of recovery and will be transferred to another hospital in Poland for life-saving treatment.
It comes as rescuers said they had called off the search at the apartment building that killed 44 people, including five children, and injured 79. Emergency services said 20 people are still missing after the devastating rocket attack.
Kovota’s friend Tatiana said the 19-year-old suffered serious injuries in the blast.
Tatiana wrote on Instagram: “My friend Anna Kotova miraculously survived. She celebrated her 19th birthday that day, but was badly injured in the Russian attack.
“While doctors saved her life, they could not save an eye and removed it. The other eye will have to be fought for after her basic condition has stabilized, she also has multiple wounds and a head injury.’
Kovota’s condition is described as “severe” but she is reportedly being taken to Poland for treatment and is able to see out of her other eye.
Kovota, who posted pictures of herself smiling in a light blue ball gown to Instagram just a few months ago, is now facing a months-long recovery and will be transferred to another hospital in Poland for life-saving treatment
Kotova, who was celebrating her 19th birthday when the rocket hit her apartment building, suffered a series of horrific injuries and is being treated in the intensive care unit of a Dnipro hospital, where doctors removed her eye
After fleeing the Luhask region, Kovota had moved to Dnipro to escape from the Russian soldiers. She graduated from a school in the city of Severodonetsk in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine last year.
Her friends are now trying to raise money for her medical treatment.
The head of the Luhansk region Serhiy Haidai said: “A 19-year-old student from the Luhansk region is one of the victims of the Dnipro tragedy.
“Now Anna is in intensive care at the Dnipro Hospital. Your condition is serious.
“Now it’s up to the doctors. The girl gets all the help she needs.”
Haidai added that in the first two days after the tragedy in Dnipro, more than 300 people came to donate blood to the victims.
It comes as rescuers said they had called off the search at the apartment building that killed 44 people, including five children, and injured 79. Pictured: Rescue workers carry the body of a man killed in Monday’s rocket attack in Dnipro
Rescuers search for missing residents after Russian troops bombed an apartment building in Dnipro on January 15
Emergency crews cleared 9 tons of debris during an extensive search and rescue operation, which has now been called off.
Around 400 people lost their homes after the attack, 72 apartments were completely destroyed and another 236 were damaged beyond repair.
Heartbreaking video has emerged showing a Ukrainian father celebrating a birthday with his daughters before he was killed in the Russian missile attack.
Photos show a huge hole in the side of the home, revealing the family’s yellow kitchen inside.
The same distinctive cuisine featured in footage of the birthday party where popular Ukrainian boxing trainer Mikhailo Korenovsky, 39, celebrated the birthday of one of his children with his close-knit family.
A heartbreaking video shows a Ukrainian father celebrating a birthday with his daughters before he is killed in a brutal Russian missile attack. Photos showing the damage to their building have gone viral, with a huge blast hole in the side of the block of flats revealing the family’s signature yellow kitchen inside (pictured).
The same distinctive cuisine featured in footage of a birthday party where popular Ukrainian boxing coach Mikhailo Korenovsky (pictured with his daughters), 39, celebrated the birthday of one of his children with his close-knit family
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed to bring those responsible for the strike to justice, saying it was “a fundamental task” for Ukraine and its western allies.
“This strike in Dnipro, as well as other similar strikes, specifically falls within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court,” he said in a video address late Monday.
“And we will use all available avenues – both domestic and international – to ensure that all Russian killers, anyone issuing and carrying out missile terror orders against our people, are brought to justice. And to make sure they serve their sentences,’ he said.
Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that the weekend’s long-range missile barrage, the first of its kind in two weeks, targeted Ukraine’s power grid.
The ministry noted that the Kh-22 is “notoriously inaccurate when used against ground targets, as its radar guidance system is poor at distinguishing targets in urban areas,” suggesting this may have been a factor in the Dnipro fatalities .
Similar missiles have been used in other incidents that have caused high civilian casualties, including an attack on a shopping center in central Ukraine’s Kremenchuk in June that officials said killed more than 20 people.
The deadliest attack on civilians before Saturday was an April 9 strike at a train station in the eastern city of Kramatorsk that killed at least 52 people, according to project The Associated Press-Frontline War Crimes Watch.
Such incidents have helped strengthen international support for Ukraine in its fight against the Kremlin invasion. The winter has seen fighting slow down, but military analysts say a renewed push from both sides is likely once the weather improves.