A clean-up operation was held in Mariupol on May 5 as Ukrainian fighters held out against Russian troops in the city's pulverized steel plant. Municipal workers, as well as volunteers, were seen clearing debris near damaged buildings, among other jobs.

Since the "special military operation" began in February, Russia has been fighting to capture the strategic port city. Some 2,000 Ukrainian troops, by Russia's most recent estimate, remain holed up there. A few hundred civilians were also believed to be trapped there.