6 June 2023 the russian occupying forces blew up the Kakhov dam, which held 18 cubic kilometres of water. These waters flood 80 cities and villages in the Kherson region. The Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro river, was providing water for the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Station, has been completely destroyed and cannot be restored.
This is a real human-made catastrophe that caused ecocide in Southern Ukraine now and will affect the environment of the Black Sea region in the long term. As of now, about 16,000 people in the areas controlled by Ukraine have been forced to leave their homes. This number is increasing every day. Unfortunately, there is information about the first killed by water people. Ukrainians show excellent humanity. They risk their own lives and help in the evacuation of people and animals. All these people, including children, the elderly, and large families urgently need our food support.
Ukrainian Food Banks Federation is promptly organizing a humanitarian mission in the Kherson region to provide food aid to the victims. It is important to keep in mind, that the UFBF continues to collect and accumulate food products in logistics hubs in Kyiv and Lviv for distribution among people in need from other regions, as the need for humanitarian aid is continuously increasing due to the war. Our team is open to receiving and redistributing charitable donations: food, water and hygiene products.
In addition, we emphasize that you can also help financially. We guarantee that all funds that will be transferred to our accounts will be converted into assistance to the victims.
It is important to understand the scale of this catastrophe right now: experts predict that it will take about 10 years to eliminate the consequences of russia's criminal actions, and by that time industrial enterprises, Crimea, and the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant will experience water shortages. Farmers who grow vegetables, fruits and grain crops are at risk, because irrigation systems do not have enough water.
In addition, there is a threat to farmers in other regions and to the fishing production in the entire Black Sea basin. The Kakhovka catastrophe significantly affects the amount of food that will be available for consumption in 2023. This means that the number of starving people will increase not only in Ukraine but also in Europe and the world, where Ukraine supplies grain and other agricultural products.
UFBF calls on everyone to join in providing financial and food aid to increase the amount of food for Ukrainians who are on the brink of starvation.
Together we will make a difference!