Around 50 civilians, including six children, have been holed up in a shelter for three months as Russian forces continue to attack the city of Avdiivka, near the regional capital Donetsk.

Exclusive footage filmed by a local cameraman on June 15 shows volunteers handing a box of supplies to the residents of the strategically important city that have been sheltering in a basement since the war began.

The visuals show dozens of locals crammed into a small room dimly lit by a few candles. A few of the children are seen unboxing the supplies and their excited reactions are captured in the footage.

Boxes of flour, canned food, and sweets for the children were handed over to the sheltering civilians.

Olga, who is heard speaking Ukrainian, said: "There is no gas or electricity. I'm not going out. I'm afraid. People go out, men mostly go out."

She is then asked why they don't evacuate.

"Because my grandmother is old, my father is here with a stroke. They have no way to leave. Where to go? I just have relatives ... nowhere to go."

Russian shelling has left around 700 houses and apartments destroyed in the city. Shops, pharmacies and ATMs have also been devastated by the conflict. Avdiivka is located near Donetsk's airport in the Donbas region and is home to Ukraine’s main coke and chemical plant. The city had been seized by separatists at the start of 2014 before being taken back and has been the scene of several clashes between Russians and Ukrainians since.

Another woman named Naduezda, speaking Russian, said: "Here we have a humanitarian aid. An emergency supply of water. Here we have also settled down for ourselves. Now there is no gas, so we have to cook here."

A man named Oleg, speaking Russian, is seen cooking a meal outside the makeshift shelter. He explained he needs to feed two dogs as well.

"My mother’s apartment burned down," he added.

Further clips captured by Alexander show the destruction caused around the city as the majority of buildings have chunks blown out of them.

Speaking on Tuesday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Donbas region is “key to determining who will dominate” the conflict in the coming weeks. "This is our state. It is vital to hold on there, in Donbas," he said in his presidential address.

Avdiivka.
50 people in one shelter for 3 months, there are no communications, a broken city, out of 30 thousand people in the city there are 3 thousand inhabitants, fighting is going on 2 km from the city.

City in the Donetsk region. To drive here, local authorities, police and volunteers use armored vehicles. The Russian army is constantly shelling roads, residential buildings, and the infrastructure of the city.

There are practically no people on the streets. They are in shelters or next to them in yards. Almost fifty people have been living in this basement for three months now, including six children.

Some people live in their apartments despite the danger. Food is cooked on a fire. ATMs, pharmacies and shops in Avdiivka do not work or are destroyed. About 700 multi-storey and private houses were destroyed.


OLGA (UKR)Now wood. There is no gas or electricity.
SLAVA(RUS) - chop wood, kindle a fire, cook food. We try hard.
- Do you go outside?
- I'm not going out, I'm afraid. People go out, men mostly go out. I'm afraid I don't go out
Why didn't you decide to evacuate?
- Because my grandmother is old, my father is here with a stroke. They have no way to leave. Well, how to leave, quit? There is a house, an apartment, a house. Where to go? I just have relatives... nowhere to go.

NADEZDA(RUS):
Our kids are playing here.
- (children) we have a party here.
- Here we have a humanitarian aid. An emergency supply of water. Here we also settled down for ourselves, we eat.
- Do you cook outside?
- Cooking now on the fire. Because there is no gas. We used to go to houses, someone went home to cook. Now there is no gas, so we have to cook here.

OLEG(RUS): Two dogs, we need to feed, the house is guarded, my mother’s apartment burned down, we can at least leave the whole house
- Do you travel far to feed?
- Well, to the pit, to the church
- How many kilometers is that?
Yes, maybe three kilometers(walk) from here.