Residents of the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol told the BBC they are trying to survive a relentless barrage of Russian shelling that has smashed residential districts and cut off power and water supplies.

“There has been no light, no heat, and no water now for two full days and we have hardly any food left,” said Maxim Skorobohach, 27, an IT developer who was hiding in his grandparents’ apartment on Thursday morning…

Communications are virtually down in the city, Skorobohach said. He has been unable to reach any friends or family in the city for two days. Multiple calls from the BBC to residents either disconnected repeatedly, or failed to connect in the first place.

Speaking to the BBC on Thursday morning, the city’s deputy mayor Sergiy Orlov said the whole city was now without power, water, or its sanitation system.

“We had 15 main power lines and all of them are now down. We are getting completely cut off – destroyed by artillery. Only the natural gas supply is left,” he said.