A mum who fled Ukraine to live in Australia as Putin troops invaded has died when she was swept off rocks while on a family visit to the beach. Olya Tikhanova had emigrated to Perth from the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhian and was on a week-long holiday with her husband and 14-year-old daughter. They were visiting Salmon Beach, near Esperance on Western Australia's south coast.
She had been taking a photo when she was swept out to sea. She was pulled from the water but could not be saved. Ms Tikhanova's husband Vlad had secured a job as a welder with Alloy Steel International in Perth just days before Russia invaded in 2022. He later brought over his wife and daughter, with Ms Tikhanova also securing a job with Alloy Steel, according to the West Australian.
Olya Loginova, a fellow Ukrainian expat living in Perth, said that Ms Tikhanova was "impossible to forget". Writing on a fundraising page, helping to raise funds for her husband as he now cares for their daughter alone. She said: "Her genuine smile, boundless energy, and love for life touched everyone who had the privilege of knowing her.
"She left behind a warmth that will always stay with us. Now her husband, Vlad, is preparing for the funeral while also caring for their daughter. The weight of this loss is unimaginable. Our little light stopped shining and our life became darker. The overflowing stream of kindness, laughter, warmth, love and radiance stopped.
