Ukrainian writer Artem Chekh concussed in Bakhmut
Ukrainian writer Artem Chekh, who is currently defending his country from the Russian invaders, has sustained a concussion in the battle for the city of Bakhmut.
Source: Iryna Tsilyk, Chekh’s wife and a writer and director, on Facebook
Quote: "Chekh was at the [frontline] positions in Bakhmut in recent days. He did not get in touch for almost five days. It happens, of course. But I'd rather not tell you how I felt. I was eager to take part in all kinds of discussions around women's cars [Ukrainian Railway has recently announced that it was considering introducing separate compartments for women and plans to test this feature – ed.], anything just to distract myself a little bit and read the news less. It was the first time I was so scared. All you know is that your loved one is somewhere over there, and his fellow soldier eventually gets in touch to happily inform you that he is 300 [cargo 300 means wounded], but 'Chekh is fine, he's doing well, don't worry!'," wrote Tsilyk.
Details: She added that Chekh had left Bakhmut with his comrades earlier, where he had spent the last "five days under endless fire, with almost no water and food", but had sustained a concussion.
Quote: "He and his guys finally managed to get out of the positions yesterday, and he recorded a quick video to comfort me, saying it's okay, I'm back in touch. I can't believe that this is my husband. It's some other person with different eyes. He is concussed but alive. Only one shell fragment is stuck in his backpack in a pack of cigarettes," the woman said.
Details: Tsilyk wrote that the writer and his colleagues managed to escape the trap in Bakhmut thanks to a heavy downpour. Chekh posted a video of this rainfall, during which he left the city with other defenders, on his Facebook page.
"The worst five days of my life are over. I did not believe we would make it out. We did," the writer also said on his Instagram.
Artem Chekh is a Ukrainian writer. He is the author of the books This You Will Not Find on Yandex, Doc 1, Pink Syrups, Point Zero, On the Big Earth, Who Are You? He is a winner of the 2017 LitAccent of the Year, 2018 Warrior of Light, 2019 Joseph Conrad-Kozieniewski Literary Prize, and the 2021 BBC Book of the Year.
He served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine from May 2015 to July 2016. He was back in the ranks of the Ukrainian forces at the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion.
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