UT Arlington graduate documenting war in Ukraine: 'I haven't thought about leaving'
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) — A UT Arlington graduate is in Ukraine documenting the war with Russia.
Daniel Carde graduated from UTA in 2018 with a communications degree.
He was visiting family in Utah when the opportunity came up to cover the Russian invasion.
He's been in Ukraine since March 3.
"I don't think there's ever been a moment that I question what am I doing here. I question am I doing this right. Am I being safe," explained Daniel Carde.
He is witnessing firsthand what the war is doing to Ukraine. He's also seeing the resiliency of Ukrainians.
"I feel like all the people who are here are proud to be Ukrainian," said Carde.
Carde provided numerous pictures of what he has seen in less than a month. He says photographing children has been tough.
"Some of them don't know where they're going. Some of them have had to leave their fathers behind, their brother, their older brothers," said Carde. "And that really hit me hard. All I could think was they should be with their parents, having a good time and not worried about a war. Not being uprooted from their lives."
The college graduate is also a U.S. Army veteran. He is used to wearing body armor and that's exactly what he does when going out to cover the war.
"It's not hop in here like a cowboy or thinking you're John Rambo. We're not. We're doing everything we can to minimize the risk," Carde told us.
The night before we interviewed him, Carde shared video and the sounds of war outside where he was staying. He put the bullets, bombs and missiles into perspective.
"I don't think too much of it. I try not to worry about it a whole lot. I mean there's nothing you can do if it hits you," said Carde as he reflected on the dangers of his job.
The photographer told CBS 11 he has no plans to get out of Ukraine anytime soon.
"I haven't thought about leaving. My original ticket was for March 23. I canceled that flight. I don't know when I'll be leaving, yet. I'd like to stay as long as I can to cover this but who knows how long it'll be," admitted Carde.
