Sky News crew comes under Russian artillery fire in terrifying Ukraine footage
Sky News crew comes under Russian artillery fire in terrifying Ukraine footage just weeks after channel’s reporter Stuart Ramsay and team were hit in ambush as Putin hit squad fired 1,000 bullets
Alex Crawford and Sky News crew targeted by Russian shelling as they attempt to cross river near Chernihiv Team had been crossing pedestrian bridge over the River Desna often used by medics and fleeing civiliansBut the news crew were forced to run as artillery continued to rained down on the area just 100m away
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This is the chilling moment a Sky News crew came under fire from heavy Russian artillery while attempting to cross a bridge used by civilians, medics and rescue workers in Ukraine.
Special correspondent Alex Crawford, 59, and her team can be seen breaking for cover amid shouts, screams and the sound of piercing booms caused by the shelling as they attempted to cross the Desna River.
Dramatic handheld camera footage shows the moment the news crew are told to ‘get down’, diving to the ground as a cool Crawford attempts to finish the recording by reporting on the surprise attack.
But she’s disrupted while describing the scene by the screams of a nearby civillian desperately warning of further incoming fire, forcing the Sky News team to jump back to their feet and get into the vehicle so they can flee.
The incident comes just weeks after Sky’s chief foreign correspondent Stuart Ramsay and camera operator Richie Mockler were struck by bullets when a car carrying their crew towards Kyiv was ambushed by Russian operatives.
Shocking video showed the moment bullets rained down on the car and the team screaming as the windscreen’s glass smashes around them as rounds of fire barrelled into the vehicle before the group shouts out: ‘Stop, we’re just journalists!’
Special correspondent Alex Crawford, 59, and her team can be seen breaking for cover amid shouts, screams and the sound of piercing booms caused by the shelling as they attempted to cross the Desna River near Chernihiv
Dramatic handheld camera footage shows the moment the news crew dive to the ground, with Crawford (above) keeping her cool and attempting to finish the recording by reporting on the surprise attack
They bundle back into the car and attempt to flee as one of those inside the vehicle warn the shelling is just 100 metres away
The crew came under fire from Russian artillery as they approach the last remaining pedestrian bridge over the Desna, used by medics, volunteers and local residents
While the bombing can still be heard going on around, Crawford urges calm as one of her colleagues mentions the shelling is roughly 100 metres away.
Recalling the incident for Sky News, Crawford writes: ‘Suddenly, a salvo of rockets came raining down on the area sending everyone crashing to the ground.
‘Then mad panic ensued as dozens of vehicles hastily turned around and tried to weave their way through the trees and back out into the open field.
‘The Russians had already hit the pedestrian bridge by now but as the civilians and emergency vehicles accelerated away, the strikes followed them.
‘Not content with destroying the one route out of the besieged city, the Russian military wanted to cause as much death and injury to those trying to run away too.’
Chief correspondent Stuart Ramsay, pictured with a cut to his face after escaping an ambush, was hit by a bullet in the lower back while in a car carrying his crew towards Kyiv three weeks ago
Terrifying footage shows bullets striking the news crew’s car and the team screaming as glass smashes around them. Pictured: Producer Dominique Van Heerden runs for cover
The danger journalists face covering the war in Ukraine was shockingly illustrated last night as Sky News released harrowing footage of their team coming under fire
Volunteers and rescue workers had been attempting to guide people over the bridge over the Desna River, which connects Chernihiv to the main route leading to the capital of Kyiv.
Rows of terrified locals, guided by volunteer troops, can be seen marching in the other direction as the shelling continues around them.
The targeting of civilians and medics violate the humanitarian codes of the Geneva Conventions, which Russia has signed up to.
But the footage shared by Sky News showed the moment volunteers, journalists and locals were the targets of indiscriminate artillery bombings.
Later clips shared in the same broadcast show banned 9M27K cluster bomb casings lodged in a farmer’s field mere miles away, adding further proof of potential war crimes being committed.
Volunteers (above) and rescue workers had been attempting to guide people over the bridge over the Desna River, which connects Chernihiv to the main route leading to the capital of Kyiv
The city of Chernihiv has strategic importance for both Ukraine and Russia, as it sits less than 100 miles north of Kyiv and has been heavily targeted by Moscow’s troops.
Residents have described a hellish scene as the besieged settlement has been cut off from key supplies in recent weeks.
One city official, Olexander Lomako, said a ‘humanitarian catastrophe’ is already unfolding as Russian forces target food storage places.
He said about 130,000 people are left in the city, about half its prewar population.
It comes just three weeks after Sky News’ Stuart Ramsay was injured by a Russian ‘assassination squad’ near Kyiv.
Ukrainian officials told the news crew that the attack was allegedly carried out by a saboteur Russian reconnaissance squad.
After a tense standoff, the team miraculously ran for their lives using a concrete wall for cover before finding shelter in a factory unit. They were later rescued by Ukrainian police.
Ramsay, recalling the terrifying attack for Sky News, detailed the moment the eerie quiet was pierced by the sound of a small explosion that rocked the car.
‘Bullets cascaded through the whole of the car, tracers, bullet flashes, windscreen glass, plastic seats, the steering wheel, and dashboard had disintegrated,’ he wrote.
‘The first round cracked the windscreen. Then we were under full attack. The steering wheel and dashboard had disintegrated. I do recall wondering if my death was going to be painful.’
