Medyka, Poland. Alla (in the wheelchair) and her family arrive at Medyka after crossing the border from Ukraine to Poland. | © Tom Nicholson / HI
Medyka, Poland. Alla (in the wheelchair) and her family arrive at Medyka after crossing the border from Ukraine to Poland. | © Tom Nicholson / HI
"Humanity & Inclusion (HI) has a team in Chernivsti, in the southwest of Ukraine, a few kilometres from the border with Romania. The city has not yet been directly affected by the conflict, although sirens can be heard regularly through the day. Until this week, only one alert had been heard since the beginning of the conflict.
This changed on Monday, when air raid sirens were heard six times, then a dozen of times on Tuesday. This forces us to take shelter underground. Locals are working to protect the public infrastructure and the city’s historic monuments. It is a strange atmosphere...
Many Ukrainians come to Chernivsti to escape the violence. For the moment, most of them are welcomed by relatives; and many continue their journey to nearby Romania or Moldova.
In Chernivsti, we are helping people with disabilities who are often forgotten in crisis situations, and can have a hard time reaching safety. For example, how do you flee fighting when you are in a wheelchair? When you are deaf or hard of hearing, how are you warned of an air raid siren? When you are a person with learning disabilities, is information on humanitarian aid or evacuation plans adapted to your needs?
In Ukraine, people with disabilities live mostly in institutions. You don't see them included in public life, so it is not always easy to identify them and to get in touch with them. We are supporting a centre for people with disabilities in Chernivsti, as the centre has doubled its capacity. The centre welcomes many disabled or older people coming from centres affected by the fighting. HI provides residents with mobility aids like crutches and wheelchairs. We also provide the centre with hygiene items, such as incontinence diapers or bedpans ."
