- The members of football clubs “Metallist” (Kharkiv) and Chernomorec (Odesa) announce a march for the “Unity of Ukraine”, which is to take place at 15:00, starting on the Sobornaya Square, and ending near the football stadium “Chernomorec”;
- 14:30: Pro-Russian activists gather near the Alexandrovskiy Prospectus. They wear marks, helmets and have shields, and are armed with sticks, bats and axes.
- Pro-Russian activists start marching towards the Sobornaya Square, while police makes weak attempts at stopping them;
- In the meantime, pro-Ukrainian activists are gathered on the Sobornaya Square. Having been warned about armed pro-Russian activists marching in this direction, self-defense of Maidan starts pulling up towards the Square from the side of Grecheskaya Street;
- Clashes commence between the football fans and the pro-Russian activists as the latter reach the Sobornaya Square;
- The street is covered in smoke. Police forms a 50 meters wide “neutral line” in between the pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists;
- Both sides start pulling cobblestones out of the roads;
- Pro-Russian activists start building barricades from trash containers and other nearby materials;
- Activists from the Emergency Moto-Assistance (no political affiliation) arrive and block the entries to the Grecheskaya Street. Shops on the neighbouring streets are closing;
- First casualties appear and ambulances start arriving;
- Pro-Russian activists armed with bats and Ьolotov cocktails make an entry;
- Pro-Russian activists start throwing Molotov cocktails. Police helps the pro-Russian activists by forming a “live shield” in front of them, who then start shooting from behind the policemen;
- The Police and the pro-Russian activists retreat together down the side street;
- Later the clashes move towards the Grecheskaya Street, there is a fencing formed from the unequipped policemen from the side of Sobornaya;
- Pro-Russian activists are trying to withdraw under the protection from the police. They occupy the local shopping center “Afina” located in the city center. There are a lot of wounded, constantly being carried away by the ambulances;
- Part of the police unit is stationed in the neighbouring blocks;
- The pro-Russian activists are being pushed back from the Hrecheskaya Square towards Sobornaya. Some of them are fleeing and some of them are trying to hide in the close by shops. At this point it is rumoured that there have been 6 deaths. Many are wounded from firearms;
- Pro-Ukrainian activists are gathering on the Sobornaya to go together to the Kulikovo Fields, where the permanent campsite of the separatists is located, set up a couple of months ago. They crowd is encouraged to not harm the police;
- The crowd leaves to the Kulikovo Field;
- [On the Kulikovo Field] Pro-Russian activists mount barricades in front of their campsite. Smoke bombs are used. Some pro-Russian activists and their “commanders” have barricaded themselves inside the Trade Union building. Some are sat on its roof with the Molotov cocktails at ready;
- Pro-Ukrainian activists set fire to the tents. At this point, the Trade Union building is still intact. The police is nowhere near to be seen. Both sides are throwing anything they could find at each other. Constant explosions and short bangs are heard;
- Pro-Ukrainian activists are trying to storm the Trade Union building. Molotov cocktails are getting thrown from both sides. The fire starts in the vestibule of the building. [The building has several exits, hence no one deems the situation as critical];
- The second floor starts catching fire. In this moment all of the fighting activity is concentrated on the backside of the building;
- A lot of police is present at the backside of the building. Inside the windows and on the roofs, people are trying to save themselves from smoke. A few people jump out. Those who survive are given first aid till the arrival of the ambulance;
TradeUnionHouse in #Odesa is burning. Some ppl are beginning to jump from the windows.Firemen&self-defense recure ppl from the upper flours
— Ukraine Front Lines (@EuromaidanPR) May 2, 2014
- The storm continues. Part of the pro-Ukrainian activists enter the building;
- The firemen start woking and getting people out of the burning building, helped by the self-defense. People are trying to extinguish the tents.
- The captured during the storm pro-Russian activists are accompanied onto the streets, and gathered into small groups. Those who could walk were put into prisoner transport vehicles, those who couldn’t – into ambulances;
- The Trade Union building is extinguished. Firemen continue working inside and the fights are still going on inside;
- Number of casualties at the end of the day:
48 deaths as a result of clashes on Grecheskaya Street (six deaths: four died on the spot and two in the hospital) and on Kulikovo Field (11 deaths as a result of people jumping out of the windows of the Trade Union Building, two of which died in the hospital, 31 died inside the Trade Union Building, one of which in the hospital). 200 injured were hospitalized.
Timeline based on the source: napaki.livejournal.com
Translated by Dasha Darchuk
