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Two Canadians died in fighting around the hotly contested Ukrainian town of Pakhmut, with one telling CBC News before his death that conditions at the front were like a “meat grinder”.

Kyle Porter, 27, of Calgary, and Cole Zelenko, 21, of St. Catharines, Ont.

The unit bore the brunt of Ukraine’s strenuous efforts to hold Bakhmut against a determined Russian attack.

The city in the eastern Donbass region has been the scene of the longest and bloodiest war, with thousands – if not tens of thousands – of casualties on both sides.

Porter called CBC News in the days leading up to his death. He exchanged several text messages and shared his concern about the difficult conditions ahead.

Three days before his murder, he wrote: “Let me know how I will live in the next few days…”.

“It was my first time using a meat grinder and I didn’t expect it to be better this time around,” he wrote in a text message.

Questioned by their commanding officer, a Foreign Legion fighter known as “Le Dentiste”, he said that on April 26 at around 6 p.m., the two Canadians were part of a larger group of soldiers assigned to have a major supply route to Bakhmut. .

The commander told CBC News that the unit came under heavy artillery fire from Russian forces. He said Porter, Zelenko and at least three other Ukrainian soldiers took shelter in a bunker, but it was directly hit.

They were all killed.

“Both are very proud of what they do,” the commander said. “We are like a family. I feel like I lost my brother.”

Global Affairs Canada said in a statement it was “aware of reports” of the deaths of two Canadian citizens and was “following up with authorities for further information.”

Both men previously served in the Canadian Armed Forces, but left the military before enlisting to fight in Ukraine. Their leader said the two have become close friends.

A photo provided to CBC News shows them standing together in combat gear.

An unofficial CBC News count would make them the fourth and fifth Canadians to die in the war since the Russian invasion in February 2022.

In Porter’s transcript for CBC News, he said he had experienced horrific conditions in Bakhmut before.

During his mission, [Porter] I saved the lives of wounded soldiers despite frequent Russian small arms and artillery fire.

He went on to note that Ukrainian commanders had recommended him for a medal for “acts of bravery” near Bakhmut.

A statement posted by Friends of Zelenco on their GoFundMe page said Zelenco was “very excited” to serve in Ukraine and had spent two tours there.

Porter previously worked in Ukraine as part of a Kharkiv-based urban search and rescue team last spring, where CBC News first met him.

At the time, she was working as a medic for the team and described several close calls as she survived Russian bombardment.

“War is an atrocity,” he said at the time, noting that he hoped to return to Ukraine “in a different role.”

The family statement said Porter felt an “absolute desire to do more” and once back in Ukraine, his military skills and experience earned him a promotion to junior sergeant.

It was believed that the Ukrainian army was only days away from launching a major counterattack against the Russian troops, and the battle for control of Bakhmut was considered decisive.

Zelenco’s body was found on the battlefield and is now in Kharkiv. The GoFundMe page reported that $30,000 was raised for funeral expenses and transportation.

Porter’s body was not found immediately, but his commanding officer said members of his unit hoped to find him soon.

Paul Hughes, a longtime community volunteer from Calgary who is now based in Kharkiv, where he runs several charities, said he planned to help move Porter’s body from the front line to Kharkiv.

“There are people all over the world who are motivated to come here and do humanitarian work, or, like Kyle and Cole, come and lose their lives,” Hughes said.

They are doing everything they can to defend Ukraine, which is a very beautiful and amazing country. “

The White House estimated on Monday that the Russian military had suffered 100,000 casualties in the past five months of fighting against Ukraine in the Bakhmut region.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters the figure, based on US intelligence estimates, included more than 20,000 people killed, half of them from the Wagner Group. He said Bakhmut’s attacks had stopped and failed.