Trapped in inferno after Russian strike, Ukrainian scientist climbed to safety

KYIV - Ihor Malchevsky focused solely on his family as he peered over the edge of his third-floor office window, thick black smoke billowing behind him after a Russian drone smashed into the historic building setting it ablaze.“My thoughts were about just one thing: how to rescue myself from this situation,” said the 69-year-old, a deputy department head at Ukraine’s National Academy of Sciences in central Kyiv which was hit on Sept 28.Malchevsky concentrated on his wife, two adult children and seven grandchildren. His fear of heights did not get in the way as he clambered onto a ledge outside the window to avoid the smoke and fierce flames.Images of Malchevsky and a colleague trapped in the burning Tsarist-era building fuelled fresh anger at Russia’s escalating strikes on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and other cities.Moscow, in recent weeks, has broadened its deadly attacks to target consumer logistics, businesses and data centres. Ukraine has struck oil and defence infrastructure in Russia, as well as online retailers.The Sept 28 attack, which killed one person and wounded several others, was one of an increasing number of daytime strikes on central Kyiv using jet-propelled drones that Russia has developed to outpace Ukrainian air defences.Chaotic scenesSpeaking to Reuters a day later, Malchevsky recalled the chaotic moments after the drone tore into the ornate yellow building just steps away from the National Opera and German embassy.“The first seconds you don’t understand - then the mind switches on and begins analysing what happened,” he said in an interview at his home outside Kyiv.Below, sirens and car alarms wailed as bystanders shouted and flames roared through the building.After tense moments clinging to the side of the building, as dozens of onlookers watched with bated breath, Malchevsky gingerly descended a ladder that rescuers had pitched against the building.Reaching the sidewalk largely unscathed, the mild-mannered Malchevsky sat stunned in a park across the street, gulping down water to clear the smoke from his throat.Family members raced to the scene to greet Malchevsky, who called them shortly after his rescue.His daughter, Kateryna Moskaliuk, 37, recalled the emotional moment she first saw her father smudged in soot.She smiled with relief, but expressed dismay about countless other Ukrainian families affected by more than four years of war.“What is all this for?” Moskaliuk asked.Ihor Malchevsky escaping from the National Academy of Sciences in Kyiv, Ukraine, after it was hit by a Russian jet-powered drone on Sept 28. PHOTO: REUTERSUkraine must fight onUkrainians are expecting another winter of fierce Russian attacks on the country’s energy grid, amid dwindling supplies of critical air defences.Malchevsky - whose grandchildren jokingly compared him to “Spider-Man” after seeing the footage on YouTube - said Ukraine should fight on to weaken Russia, despite attempts to revive US-backed peace talks.A US official said on Sept 29 that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev held “constructive” talks with his American counterparts.“It’s a senseless exercise,” Malchevsky said. REUTERSUkrainian scientist Ihor Malchevsky speaking in an interview with Reuters on Sept 29. PHOTO: REUTERS