Nearly Encircled, Ukraine’s Last Stronghold in Luhansk Resists Russian Onslaught

SEVERODONETSK, Ukraine — 26 people living with 4 dogs and a cat in the basement of a funeral home in Severodonetsk, hiding from the battles between Russian and Ukrainian forces that are raging nearby, there has been no news of battle for more than a week.

That’s how much time has passed since mobile phone coverage disappeared in Severodonetsk and the rest of the Ukrainian-administered Luhansk region. At that time, the electricity and water supply had run out. Grocery stores and all other stores had closed more than two months earlier, when the rapidly advancing Russian army was stopped in Severodonetsk and the cities adjoining it.