He Learned His Family Had Been Killed in Russia's Invasion When He Saw Viral Photo of Their Bodies

"I recognized the luggage and that is how I knew," Serhiy Perebyinis told The New York Times

Russian invasion of Ukraine. Photo: SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty

The father of a Ukrainian family who died in the Russian invasion has told news outlets he learned of their deaths from seeing photos of their bodies on social media.

Serhiy Perebyinis was in eastern Ukraine tending to his sick mother when his wife, 43-year-old Tatiana Perebeinis, and kids Mykyta, 18, and 9-year-old Alisa were killed by Russian forces as they ran across a damaged bridge in Irpin, The New York Times reported.

The Perebyinis family was among a group of residents who were hit by a Russian military strike while crossing a bridge on Sunday, according to the Times. Anatoly Berezhnyi, a church volunteer who was helping the family flee, was also killed in the attack.

The residents, the paper reported, were on their way to evacuate Irpin by bus to travel and relocate to nearby areas amid the fighting.

"They were just trying to get out of town. To escape. The whole family," Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn previously said in remarks. "How many such families have died in Ukraine? We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will punish everyone who committed atrocities in this war."

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The bodies of Tatiana, Mykyta, and Alisa could be seen lying on the ground in a now-viral photo taken for the Times.

Serhiy, 43, told the paper he learned they were dead by seeing the photo on social media.

In an interview, Serhiy recounted his last conversation with Tatiana, whom he met in high school and reconnected with years later at a Ukrainian nightclub. The two married in 2001.

Irpin, Ukraine. Wolfgang Schwan/Anadolu Agency via Getty

The night before his family was killed, Serhiy told the Times he apologized to his wife for not being able to help her escape.

"I told her, 'Forgive me that I couldn't defend you,' " he said. "I tried to care for one person, and it meant I cannot protect you. She said, 'Don't worry, I will get out.' "

Serhiy described how the family spent days in a basement in their apartment building, after it was shelled, and had made one attempt to evacuate earlier, but called it off when they spotted a tank.

Their next attempt was planned in greater detail and would have involved them crossing a bridge over Irpin River.

Speaking to the Times, Serhiy said he first realized something had gone wrong when he looked at a locator app that monitored his wife's location, which it said was at Clinical Hospital No. 7 in Kyiv.

After numerous attempts to call both her and their children, Serhiy looked on Twitter, where reports was beginning to spread of a family who was killed while trying to cross a bridge.

Then he saw a photo.

"I recognized the luggage and that is how I knew," he said.

The Times reports that he was able to travel back to his home, to the site where his family died, despite being questioned by Russian guards on his way. He told them: "My whole family died in what you call a 'special operation' and we call a war. You can do what you want with me. I have nothing left to lose.''

The photo of their bodies, Serhiy said, served as evidence of the human toll of the invasion to all those who are watching: "The whole world should know what is happening here."

Irpin, Ukraine. ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty

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The invasion, ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, has drawn condemnation around the world and increasingly severe economic sanctions against Russia.

With NATO forces massing in the region around Ukraine, various countries have also pledged aid or military support to the resistance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, 44, called for peace talks — so far unsuccessful — while urging his country to fight back.

Putin, 69, insists Ukraine has historic ties to Russia and he is acting in the best security interests of his country. Zelenskyy vowed not to bend.

"Nobody is going to break us, we're strong, we're Ukrainians," he told the European Union in a speech in the early days of the fighting, adding, "Life will win over death. And light will win over darkness."

The Russian attack on Ukraine is an evolving story, with information changing quickly. Follow PEOPLE's complete coverage of the war here, including stories from citizens on the ground and ways to help.

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