In the eastern Ukrainian town of Siversk, Valery drives a chainsaw through a tree trunk, like many others in the war-ravaged region as they stock up for a cold winter.
"We try to survive thanks to wood," the 39-year-old said, who stayed behind to look after his mother after his wife and children fled to the capital.
"A basement (to hide from Russian strikes), a stove, and wood -- that's all we have."
Russian forces are pounding the district with missiles and rockets, and have unsuccessfully tried several times to capture it.
Though the town has so far held out, its heights and eastern flank have been disfigured by the strikes, and deep craters have been etched in the earth.
In one square, buildings, including a school have been severely damaged.
Only a handful of the town's pre-war 12,000 residents remain today, battling life without gas or electricity.
"There's nothing else to do, so we chop down the trees as much as possible. There are lots here, so it should be enough [for the winter]," Valery said.
