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A Guernseyman living in the Ukrainian city of Odessa, which was targeted yesterday by Russian cruise missiles, last night told Express that civilians there "are terrified about what Russian soldiers will do if they come" into the city and has asked the Bailiwick to "pray for Ukraine in these desperate times".
Speaking to Express just before 18:00 local time, Colin Wood said: "We had two huge explosions in Odessa this morning and air raid sirens wailing. Apparently it was cruise missiles hitting army bases a couple of kilometres [around 1.2 miles] from us.
"People on the street are now frightened about what might happen. The history of the Russian Army entering another country is not good.
"We are hunkering down for the night with beer, cheese, smoked meats, cognac, bread, pickled cucumbers and a lot of prayers."
Pictured: Colin Wood and his wife, pictured in happier times, live in Odessa in Ukraine, which was hit by Russian cruise missiles today.
US President Joe Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to re-establish the former Soviet Union - of which Ukraine was a part - after he launched a full-scale assault on the north, east and south of the country.
Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that Thursday's strikes on various cities and military bases killed 137 people - soldiers and civilians. Overnight, there were fresh strikes on Kyiv, the capital. Pictures emerged of large numbers of people seeking safety in underground metro stations.
A curfew was imposed between 22:00 and 06:00. But Mr Wood said the streets of Odessa, which is in the south of the country, were empty hours before then.
"We closed the shop early as there is literally no one on the streets. Odessa ran out of bread everywhere before noon today. Our shop ran out late morning.
"All trains and planes have been stopped.
"My wife tried for four hours to contact her daughter and her mother this morning, but phones were very hit and miss. Thankfully, she spoke to both of them and they are both safe."
Pictured: Odessa is a major seaport and transportation centre on the north-western shore of the Black Sea.
"We had several air raid sirens during the day. One of my friends in Kyiv [the capital city] saw a cruise missile flying overhead until it dropped and hit its target.
"When the explosions happened even the traffic stopped as people looked around to see if anything was visible. The sound was unlike anything other than high explosives.
"Now we are waiting to see what happens next. We know that Luhansk, Donetsk and Mariupol in the Donbass have been attacked. Kharkiv in the north, which is 35km from the Russian border, has seen Russian tanks on the outskirts of the city. Odessa, Kyiv, Kharkiv and Mykoliev have all been attacked by cruise missiles."
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Images: Courtesy of Colin Wood.
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