13-year-old Kyrylo Iliashenko from Sumy was on a bus with his mother when a Russian missile hit nearby. The explosion ignited a fire in the vehicle, and the doors became jammed.
However, Kyrylo remained calm – he climbed out of a window and began helping other passengers escape the burning interior.
He shared his experience during the "Unified News" telethon.
"At that moment, I wasn't thinking – I was acting. I just did everything on adrenaline," the teenager said about saving the passengers.
He added that he had no prior experience or skills in providing assistance.
Kyrylo also recounted his memories of that moment to reporters from "Kordon.Media".
"We were driving along Bankova Street – I heard something whistling and falling. Then came the screams of people, and windows shattered. I fell, and glass rained down on me. At first, I had a mild concussion, and all sounds became muffled.
I looked left and right and smelled smoke. I thought the bus was already on fire or could catch fire. I quickly got up and tried to unblock the bus doors. When that didn't work, I threw my bag out the window and jumped out, then began to unlock the doors from the outside," he recalls.
The other passengers were silent, stunned by the shock. When he managed to open the doors, Kyrylo started letting people out. His mother's face was covered in blood, and he admits he was very scared for her.
As a result of the attack, Kyrylo was injured himself – three shrapnel pieces hit his head. One of the largest metal fragments has been removed, but the other two, according to doctors, will remain as they are located too deeply. His life is not in danger, but he is still under medical supervision.
His mother, Marina, admitted that she still cannot recover from the trauma.
"It's hard to close my eyes – that image is stuck in my mind. We didn't sleep all night. It's emotionally very hard. I was on the bus and saw how my son helped. At that moment, I realized that I had raised a real man," she proudly added.
The boy studies in the eighth grade at Sumy School No. 4 and practices wrestling at a local sports school.
On the institution's page, Kyrylo's act was described as an example of true heroism, and they thanked his parents for raising such a son.
The Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko, also acknowledged the boy's act. He visited him during a work trip to Sumy.
"The whole country is thanking Kyrylo for his actions. This is our new generation of Heroes: brave, decisive, and selfless," noted the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.