I’m not homeless, but I sleep in the metro

Vertical Video Creator

Nastia Kasinchuk

Dear Kyiv Independent readers,

I'm Nastia Kasinchuk, a video creator at the Kyiv Independent. I live and work in Kyiv, and lately there have been nights when my bed has been the floor of the nearest metro station.

No, I'm not homeless; I pay rent every month for an apartment in central Kyiv. But when the threat of a mass Russian missile and drone attack is high, going underground feels like the safest choice. And I'm far from the only person making that decision.

Russia has been attacking Kyiv since day one of the full-scale invasion. But in 2026, those attacks changed dramatically.

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Even just six months ago, most of Russia's large-scale attacks began with Shahed-type attack drones. They were slow enough that, when the air-raid siren sounded — usually in the middle of the night — Kyiv residents had time to get dressed, grab their things, and reach a shelter.

Now, more and more attacks begin with ballistic missiles, which are way faster and harder to intercept than Shahed-type drones, and which can reach Kyiv within two minutes. Sometimes, the explosions come before the siren.

So instead of waiting for an alarm, people are increasingly deciding to go underground in advance, before the air raid sirens even sound.

I often see it when I come home late from work. People are already in the metro, laying out their mattresses and sleeping bags, preparing to spend the night underground. I will probably see it tonight too, as I'm writing this email late in the evening.

And it is no coincidence that Russia has intensified its use of ballistic missiles now. The U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of shooting them down have always been in short supply in Ukraine. But the shortage has never been as severe as it is today.

And of course, Russia is exploiting this shortage to strike poorly defended Ukrainian cities hundreds of kilometers from the front line.

It can be hard to explain what this feels like, but the numbers can give an idea. In July 2026 alone, Russia launched more than 100 ballistic missiles at Kyiv and the surrounding region. For comparison, throughout all of 2023, just over 50 ballistic missiles targeted the capital.

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Once, I had to run to the metro while ballistic missiles were already exploding overhead. It felt like I was the main character in an action movie, only I had been cast without ever choosing to be there. It was one of the most frightening experiences of my life. Even now, when I think of it, it still feels surreal.

So when Telegram channels monitoring Russian attacks warn of a possible mass overnight strike, there are nights when I decide it's better to sleep underground.

And that's how I end up sleeping on that cold floor.

I bring my yoga mat, a backpack with documents and valuables, some water, earplugs — because it gets surprisingly loud in the metro, even at night — an eye mask, and my blanket. It sounds strange when I list my items like that, but I have just learned to keep a small version of my life ready to go. And while in the metro, I just try to make it feel as much like a normal night as possible.

People take shelter at a Kyiv metro station during a Russian missile strike

People take shelter at a metro station during a Russian missile strike on Kyiv, Ukraine, early on July 30, 2026. (Oleksii Filippov / AFP / Getty Images)

Everyone around me is usually doing the same: trying to get some sleep and waiting for the danger to pass.

We pay rent. We have homes. We have beds. And still, we find ourselves spending the night underground.

Perhaps the hardest part is realizing how ordinary this has become — how thoroughly we have adapted to something that should never have become normal in the first place.

At the Kyiv Independent, that reality is part of our work. When a missile or drone attack hits Kyiv, we are not reporting from somewhere far away. Our reporters and video journalists are here — experiencing the same attacks, uncertainty, and sleepless nights as everyone else in the city.

We still have to wake up the next morning and report on what happened. We still have to talk to people whose homes have been damaged, document what is happening, and explain it to readers around the world.

Independent journalism is what allows people outside Ukraine to understand not only what happened, but what it means to live here. And it allows people here to have reporting they can trust when the situation around them is anything but certain.

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Thank you for reading — and for supporting independent journalism from Ukraine. Tonight, hopefully, I'll sleep in my own bed. But if another major attack is expected, I know exactly how to fit my life into my backpack.

Best,

Nastia Kasinchuk

The Kyiv Independent

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