“I jumped out the window to open the door”: the story of Kyrylo, who saved people in Sumy, became part of the Museum of Civilian Voices founded by the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation

Thirteen-year-old Kyrylo from Sumy found himself inside a burning bus at the moment of a missile strike by russian forces on the city. Most of the bus passengers and the driver were killed. Despite being wounded, the boy did not lose his composure: he managed to open the door and helped surviving passengers escape from the mangled vehicle. For his courage, he was awarded the presidential distinction “Future of Ukraine.” Kyrylo shared his story with the Museum of Civilian Voices founded by the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation.

“It hit right in front of the bus. I immediately fell to the floor and heard glass flying and shattering onto me. I jumped out the window to open the door so people could get out. I knew how to act in a critical situation, and my physical strength helped me, so I managed to open the door,” he recalls.

The tragic event occurred on April 13, 2025. That day, russian forces launched a missile strike on the center of Sumy. As a result of the attack, at least 35 people were killed in the city and more than a hundred were injured.

At first, Kyrylo acted on adrenaline, helping other injured passengers escape from the damaged bus. The boy also pulled his mother out of the bus. Only later did doctors discover three fragments in his head, and he underwent surgery. The consequences of the explosion continued to haunt him for a long time.

“After that explosion, my ears were ringing for about a week. The first night I could not sleep at all because of the noise,” the boy says.

Sport helped him recover. Kyrylo is the Ukrainian U-15 beach wrestling champion, trains in wrestling, and competes in beach wrestling tournaments. He won silver at the European Beach Wrestling Championship among youth athletes. According to his father, it was sports training that taught him to react quickly in stressful situations.

“I live through sport, so for me sport is everything. It helps with everything. It is the best medicine,” Kyrylo says.

Today, Kyrylo has returned to studying and training and is preparing to represent Ukraine at the European level. At the same time, the events of that day in Sumy have remained with him forever. People in the streets began recognizing him and thanking him for his courage.

“People recognize me in the streets, come up to me, say hello, and thank me for what I did,” Kyrylo says.

Watch Kyrylo’s story here: https://bit.ly/48aSjQw

The collection of the Museum of Civilian Voices founded by the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation already numbers more than 145,000 stories about the war. This is the largest collection in the world of testimonies from civilians affected by russia’s war against Ukraine.