CONTENT WARNING: This text contains explicit descriptions of death and dead bodies.
For many, the unknown is worse than bad news, and any war produces both. Kateryna Rotarenko immerses herself in soil and iron to bring answers to those waiting to know if their loved ones are alive or not-she's a search and recovery expert.
Kateryna is driven by a simple principle-the memory of the dead is the responsibility of the living. Yet, her work is not noticeable for many reading the reports of the dead and rarely asking themselves what it takes to find and identify them.
She performs her duties as part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine's Na Schyti (On The Shield) project.
"Sometimes, I am asking myself, 'Who am I?' A girl who has been looking for the dead men since the beginning of the full-scale war, while someone else is looking for this girl so that she can assist in finding the missing. I am looking for traces of death, where it has been. On this path towards others, I cannot afford to lose myself," Kateryna shares.
Her work involves inspecting land that hosted combat against the invaders for the presence of human remains, exhuming temporary graves, photographing and labeling the deceased, and packing and preparing them for transport and further investigation.
"It is meticulous work that demands patience, focus, and specialized skills. I have seen bodies in many different states."
No matter what is in front of her, be it a burned-out vehicle or a blackened spot of earth despoiled by fire and explosives, Kateryna searches through anything to find organic and non-organic signs of the past life.
"During a missile strike or some other explosion, everything shatters and crumbles away, and a human body disintegrates in seconds. Flesh and bones can merge with surrounding metal materials or scatter across the site in small pieces."
Some people are fated to remain missing. I am holding them in my hands, but there's nothing I can do to find out who they are. Medicine is powerless here, and DNA cannot be recovered.
However, the conclusion depends on what she finds.
"Limbs are the trickiest thing during the search and excavation.
People lose their hands and legs in the war. However, a discovered limb does not prove that the person is dead. That is why we have to investigate the location very carefully: analyze the events, draw initial conclusions, and continue the search for remains of bones, clothing, ammunition, and other evidence to find out if this person might be still alive."
It is beyond normality that such terrible discoveries may signify hope, but in Ukraine's modern reality, they indeed do.
Kateryna does not pretend to have gotten used to what she does or deny that even she can sometimes become scared or disgusted. However, she understands the gravity of her task and lets that carry her to do what she must do.
Bones should not remain trapped in iron. The people who gave their lives deserve more than that. This is a matter of honoring the dead and showing respect for the fallen soldier.
Usually, the Department of Civil-Military Cooperation of the Ukrainian General Staff coordinates their search plans, delineating the areas where the team can expect to find the most.
Still, their work depends on many things, such as theweather, security situation, and plain luck and fate. When these things are not in their favor, Kateryna prays for forgiveness from those whom they could not find and promises to return for them later.
The grassy steppes where she searches for the dead can sometimes be full of life, like hares, foxes, and pheasants, occasionally crossing paths with Kateryna. At the same time, the high grass is the main reason their group has to return to the scene, in autumn.
"This is a completely different process when we return for the 3rd, 4th, and 5th time to a place where we know for sure that the soldiers, for instance, exploded. We hope to find at least one human bone suitable for DNA analysis. For as long as I have worked here, I have known that we must take every chance to bring our people home."
Imagining everything that might have happened on the scene helps, technically. Meanwhile, the emotional core fights within to prevent Kateryna from collapsing.
"I seek out beautiful places and take photos of nature, fields, and flowers, and rely on the peace given by this beauty, my teammates, and myself to maintain my emotional well-being during our expeditions. Beauty can be found even amidst war if you know where to look for it."
However, the shift that her vision of life overtook is huge. Her personal statements prove it the best, breathing deeply with respect and a much greater appreciation of life, living and enjoying it until the very last moments.
"Life is simple if people do not make it complicated, and very short."
The full text is based on public information taken from open sources and used with the owner's consent.
