Svatioslav Spatar is the field commander of Operation Aid in southern Ukraine. Ever since shortly after disaster struck, he and the other volunteers in the organization have been working to evacuate the people affected by the floods.
"Not everyone wants to be evacuated. It is mainly about pensioners who have difficulty climbing stairs and the elevators do not work, says Svatioslav.
Handing out food and water
The volunteers work, among other things, to distribute food, water and other supplies to those who for various reasons cannot be evacuated. They also help to accommodate the evacuees in temporary accommodation.
Operation Aid operates only in the part of the Kherson region controlled by Ukraine. Therefore, the volunteers have no insight into the situation in the areas on the eastern side of the river occupied by Russia.
– Our main focus now is to provide medical assistance to those who need it and in the future it is important to be able to contribute with materials for people to be able to rebuild their houses. Many are completely destroyed.
In the clip above, Sviatoslav Sparat tells us more about the evacuation work.