Man fleeing war in Ukraine and cat found alive in cold Romanian mountains: “A peach kept my heart warm”

A Ukrainian man who took a dangerous journey to escape his own a country with wars She entered Romania and was rescued from a deep mountain river in sub-freezing temperatures with an unexpected companion: her one-month-old kitten named Peach.

More than a dozen rescuers worked in a strong storm to save Vladislav Duda, 28, who was found “soaked and frozen” and scalding in a 437-meter deep cave in the northern Maramures region last week, according to a report. mountain rescue service in the region. Duda had fled to Ukraine to avoid being drafted into his country’s military which was fighting Russia.

“The cat was warm and warming … so it saved his life,” Dan Benga, director of the rescue organization in the mountains of Maramures, told the Associated Press. “What we have seen is that he cares about the cat, he doesn’t care about himself.”

When the rescue team found the Ukrainian man, they unzipped his jacket and found Peach hiding inside. Benga remembers asking Duda if he is okay, he replied: “I am happy because my cat is alive. I got a chance from God for a new life. The happiest moment is because the cat is with me,” Benga. Duda remembers saying.

The auburn cat, a tomcat called “Peach” in Ukrainian, was suffering from the effects of malnutrition after going without food four days earlier and the melted snow helping to keep it alive.

“It’s like a dream, after everything I’ve been through, I was hoping to be found and alive,” Duda, who worked as a journalist in Ukraine, told AP. “Peach kept my heart warm and kept my faith alive.”

A helicopter was initially launched but was called off due to hazardous weather conditions that impeded visibility. Rescuers on the ground then began a difficult mission in deep snow and temperatures as low as minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) until they reached the couple.

During the complicated climb out of the canyon that took more than five hours, the Ukrainian woman did not let go of her cat. He kept holding Peach to his chest “from the bottom up… until we put him in the ambulance,” said Bhenga. “He only said ‘Please take care of the cat.’

Close to frostbite, Duda is now receiving anti-inflammatory medication and blood circulation treatment, said Izabella Kiskasza, who runs a community center for Ukrainian refugees in Maramures and is helping the pair. Peach received veterinary treatment in Baia Mare on Monday and is expected to make a full recovery.

Duda left his home in Ukraine’s war-torn Kharkiv region more than a week before he got lost with his animal companion in the Carpathian Mountain range, which runs through northern Romania and southwestern Ukraine.

Although Peach is the first bull to be rescued from Romania’s mountainous region, Duda is one of many Ukrainian men who have risked their lives through the harsh conditions of the mountains to avoid being drafted into their country’s bitter war with Russia.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, more than 160 Ukrainian men have been rescued in the Maramures region of Romania and the number has doubled every year since then, Benga said. 16 others were found dead.

Two other Ukrainian men in their 20s were rescued by helicopter on the same day as Duda, he said.

“Many people come, but they don’t have a health problem … and they don’t get help,” said Benga. “People who ask for help are in the last few hours of their lives.”

Ukraine has taken steps to increase the number of men eligible for the draft, but efforts have run counter to Russia’s larger military force. In April, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law lowering the legal age for men from 27 to 25.

Desertion also destroys the Ukrainian army of much-needed personnel at a crucial time in its war with Russia. The US, which has also urged Ukraine to draft more soldiers, and allow the recruitment of those aged 18, on Saturday announced a new $988 million military aid package to Ukraine in its war with Russia as Washington races to provide aid to Kyiv. before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

“What I remember is the fear of the unknown and the fear of not making it to the night alive,” Duda recalled on Monday. “My peach kept me alive. When we escaped, we were afraid of everyone, that we might be sent back to fight a war that is not ours.”

According to the United Nations, approximately 4 million people are internally displaced within Ukraine and 6.8 million refugees from Ukraine have been recorded worldwide as of November 2024.

According to the animal welfare group Four Paws, since the start of the war, thousands of domestic dogs and cats have been lost or abandoned. In 2022, the German organization set up a shelter on the border of Ukraine-Poland to rescue assistance pets.