A clearer view of our work here over the next few months


Kherson is dangerous. No two ways about it. Shells and missiles land randomly around the city. Last night was a bad night. Civilians, as usual, targeted, including schools. The first photo is of a car. You might have difficulty naming the make. Fortunately, no one was in the car. Other photos show the result of indiscriminate shelling last night, including an apartment building and a school. The school had been previously shelled and repaired. Now shelled again. Go figure.

We met today with a founder and director of an organisation based in Kherson, with whom we will work. Our tentative plans are, each week, to work 2 days in Odesa with UNICEF, giving English lessons. Then spend 3 days in Kherson, delivering aid and supporting local groups.

The reality in Kherson and most of the rest of the eastern front is so different from the life of most Ukrainians in the west of the country. It seems so far away. Don't even get me started on the boy racers in their flashy cars in Odesa...wa'"&nk;+!s).

The curfew in Kherson is officially 7pm. However, the unofficial curfew is about 3pm. Not many people on the streets after that. And then the sound of shelling all night. My heart aches for the children here. May they be safe this coming night. I can't even begin to imagine the long term psychological damage.

In case we forget, let's be clear, it's Putin killing the women and children. Dictators have always found a way to kill ordinary people. And found an excuse for doing so.

Comments

  1. Mum6 June 2023 at 11:35

    As Fiona's mum I am obviously concerned about the increased risks they are taking. I feel they have done a brilliant job but, since they are not spring chickens, they should be thinking it was time to leave rather than take on more dangerous work.
    Am I alone in thinking this way?
    I am very proud of what they have achieved.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Third Christmas of the War.

Image
I remember when we first went to Ukraine, we thought we'd better hurry up and get over there to help before the war finished, and there'd be nothing for us to do. How naïve were we? The situation in Ukraine at present has got even worse, especially in the areas in close contact with the Russian forces, although with the constant Shahed and missile attacks nowhere is safe. Kherson has become particularly difficult, and delivering aid there is a direct threat to life. Any vehicle or person can be targeted by Russian small killer drones. This week, a vehicle that is used to deliver aid that we have sometimes used, was attacked and badly damaged beyond repair. Miraculously, the driver, a person I know survived but suffered injuries.  The occupants of a bus were not so fortunate. It was attacked, 3 people died and several more injured. It's really terrifying.  What's really sick is that the Russian's then post o...
Read more

The killing goes on.

Image
Time diminishes things. News cycles bring new, more pressing concerns. But the war here in Ukraine grinds on, with deaths a daily occurrence. The killing seems to have become more incideous and heartless.This weekend in Kherson, delivering aid, under the fairly constant sound of artillery and drone attacks, I heard and saw the inhumanity of this senseless war. There is now a real tangible fear about going out in your car in Kherson. Over the last few months, individual cars have been targeted by Russian drones. These carry small bombs or grenade type munitions. . A car is targeted. An initial bomb dropped. The man realises he's  being targeted and tries to drive away at high speed. He then stops suddenly, hoping to get away. Opens his door to run away, but about two metres away from the car a small bomb explodes. With the door open, nothing seems to happen, then as in slow motion, a man falls from the driver's seat onto the road. Dead. It...
Read more

Krakow to Lviv

Image
We left Krakow at 3am because we had heard that there have been up to 3 hour waits on the Poland-Ukraine border. The balance has changed to more people returning to Ukraine (to the relatively safe western Lviv region) than leaving Ukraine. As it happened, we drove through the fairly haphazard border controls with no hold up. The first thing we noticed on the Ukrainian side were miles (literally) of lorries lining the side of the highway, which was only 2 lanes so made for fairly scary driving. On the Polish side was an equally long line of parked cars, waiting to be sold. We also noticed more potholes on Ukrainian roads than even East Lancashire! The purpose of our visit to Ukraine is 2-fold: firstly, we drove our friend, Romana, home to Lviv (in her car) with her 4-year-old daughter, as she decided against coming to England in order to be with her husband and family. Secondly, w...
Read more