Ukraine, a new humanitarian aid mission of the Italian Red Cross reaches war zones

ROME – A new convoy of Italian Red Cross left the capital to meet the demands of the sister organization Ukraine. What worries humanitarian assistants are the energy crisis and the arrival of the cold season. The four destinations will be Suceava (Romania), Vinnytsia (Ukraine), Zytomyr (Ukraine), Chernivtsi (Ukraine). Among other things, 10 ambulances, 1 snow plow, 55 power generators and 160 respirators for oxygen therapy, 1 food truck will be delivered here. The project shared with the Ukrainian Red Cross of construction of 116 temporary housing modules in the Bucha district. For these works, the CRI has allocated 12 million euros from donations. The houses will be ready next spring.

The big cold and the energy crisis. “The tragic conflict that has been affecting the Ukrainian territory for almost a year – underlines Francesco Rocca, president of the Italian Red Cross – has seen our Association as the protagonist, since February, of numerous humanitarian missions: from the weekly dispatch of aid convoys to the evacuation of fragile civilians, up to the construction of a real logistics hub for the storage of goods of international importance in Suceava, on the border between Romania and Ukraine, mobile clinics and the launch of the project for the construction of temporary housing modules for displaced families. With the extreme cold and the energy crisis we could not fail to be present once again, promptly responding to the appeal of the Ukrainian sister company”.

A CRI aid budget for Ukraine. The mission is made up of 18 operators and headed by Ignazio Schiuntu, Director of Operations, Emergencies and Relief of the CRI, who has followed various missions in Ukrainian territory this year. Schintu drew up a balance sheet of the CRI’s aid to Ukraine. 83 missions (43 from Italy and 40 from the CRI Hub in Romania) for the transport and evacuation of fragile civilians, 3,500 tons of donated humanitarian aid, a logistics hub set up in Suceava in Romania for the storage of aid, 245 vulnerable people evacuated, with a commitment of 169 operators and 56 vehicles. 176 people welcomed in CRI centers in Italy, at the Fenoglio Center in Piedmont, in Marina di Massa and at the Trento Committee. 29 rescue vehicles have been sent to Ukrainian territory so far for basic health care with itinerant units on the territory.