These were Russian women, young children, and the elderly; almost all of the working age male and female population were either drafted or evacuated: only a third of the original population of 470,000 remained in East Karelia when the Finnish army arrived, and half of them were Karelians.
Det var russiske kvinder, små børn og gamle, da næsten alle mænd og kvinder i den arbejdsdygtige alder enten var indkaldt eller evakueret: kun ⅓ af den oprindelige befolkning på 470.000 var tilbage i Østkarelen, da de finske besættere ankom, og kun halvdelen af disse var karelere.