Mitryasova, O. CHRONICLES OF THIRST: DOCUMENTING MYKOLAIV'S WATER SECURITY CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS IN A WAR-AFFECTED CITY: Monograph. Mykolaiv: PMBSNU, 2026, 124 p.

CHRONICLES OF THIRST: DOCUMENTING MYKOLAIV'S WATER SECURITY CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS IN A WAR-AFFECTED CITY occupation at that time. This made any quick repair work impossible. The city was held hostage by the enemy, who turned the fundamental human right to water into an instrument of blackmail and terror. Since that date, the struggle for every liter of water has become not just a household chore for every Mykolaiv resident, but a daily act of resistance and survival. The first weeks without water: queues at springs, rainwater collection and volunteer help When the water went out in the taps on April 12, 2022, Mykolaiv fell silent in long, endless queues. The social portrait of these queues became monotonous and sad: the main burden of the water crisis fell on the shoulders of the elderly. The city, which yesterday lived in the rhythm of a modern metropolis, was thrown back to the Middle Ages in a matter of days in terms of the level of domestic comfort. Already on the third day without water, the city began to change in appearance. People appeared on the streets with all possible containers: plastic bottles, buckets, canisters, large bottles, which were carried on strollers or garden wheelbarrows. Each well, each well near enterprises or private houses instantly became strategic objects (Fig. 1.20). Fig. 1.20. Drinking water supply of the city during wartime (author's photo). Queues at springs became a new center of social life. The queue for water in 2022 is not a place for heated discussions. This is the silent standing of people with plastic bottles, frayed canisters and cans. The most common sound of Mykolaiv yards was the roar of "tailors" and old baby carriages, on which 40-60 liters of cargo were carried. For a person aged 70+ years, such a trip 32