{"id":2563,"date":"2023-06-21T15:19:42","date_gmt":"2023-06-21T19:19:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rawtravelblog.com\/?p=2563"},"modified":"2023-06-21T15:19:42","modified_gmt":"2023-06-21T19:19:42","slug":"helping-the-flooded-villages-in-kherson-ukraine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rawtravelblog.com\/helping-the-flooded-villages-in-kherson-ukraine\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping the Flooded Villages in Kherson Ukraine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

JULY 19th, 2023 – Driving from Kyiv to the Southern parts of Ukraine, I can see that farmland is everywhere and that Ukraine is the world’s breadbasket. Wheat is ripening. Fruit is in season. Farms, as far as their eyes can see, make the flooding brought on by the Russian destruction of the Kakhovka Dam so unspeakably harmful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yesterday Mark & Hymie arranged for us to embed with the Red Cross offices of Kharkiv and Mykolaiv to help them assess and help the victims of the flooding of their neighbors in Kherson Oblast (Oblast is like a state in the U.S.) caused by the June 6th eco-terrorism event from the Russians destroying the Kakhovka dam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a briefing, some coffee, and some getting lost, we finally made our way from Mykolaiv to a small community where a local school now serves as a relief site where distressed locals can pick up food, clothing, water, etc. The children’s playground was full of lovely little kids playing under the watchful eyes of their mums. (Yes, I’m talking a bit British these days, thanks to a few days in the van with Hymie, who hails from London).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just across the street was a destroyed building with a man selling fruit next door. I have mostly stopped taking photos or videos of demolished buildings as it is becoming redundant and a common site. But it was not lost on me that it was directly across the street from a school. I posted something on Instagram (you can follow at Instagram.com\/RawTravelTV ) about taking a risk jogging by a Russian military target, a playground recently because so many Ukrainian children have been killed or maimed on them by the Russians, who seem not to value anyone’s life or humanity. I digress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Soviet-style playground for the school was like a look back into the 1970s or 80s at the height of the cold war, today all painted blue and yellow, Ukrainian colors, which would not have been allowed back then. Of course, I toured the outdoor toilet. Too bad “Don’t Skip the Loo” is already in “the can,” as it would have been good footage. At the school, we loaded a big water bladder capable of holding 10K liters of water to act as a water tank for two villages. This would be a test run; if successful, more would roll out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In all, we visited two villages with the Red Cross. The smells in the villages where the water had now receded were intense, where the flood water had receded. The first village was unique in that when the Russians once occupied it, the village head did not flip to the Russians to save his skin but stayed loyal to Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The seemingly tight-knit community gathered around to collect water and gossip. The town is luckier than most because electricity has been restored, though some are afraid to turn it on because many of the homes are still wet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hymie donated one of her brand-new laptops, courtesy of the Royal Bank of Montreal, to the “mayor” and the administrative center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The next village was far away over some bumpy roads and not a very pleasant ride in the backseat of a cargo van. As we rolled up, it was apparent it had been completely devastated by the flood and the adjoining farmland, on which I assume the village once depended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We dropped off the water bladder and toured a couple of the homes. The first home I toured had a giant collapsed sinkhole right next to the house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valentina is the sweetest grandmother, and she immediately grabbed me and started talking to me as she pulled me into her home, speaking in Ukrainian the entire time. I got the feeling she wanted me to witness her pain and what the Russians had done to her home as she encouraged me to film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Hymie walked in, she continued but broke into tears, with Hymie comforting her and me fighting back my own (something I’m getting used to as well) as I continued to film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Artem, one our Kharkiv Red Cross bi-lingual contacts, translated for us. Valentina had been in this house for 54 years and raised a family with her husband. Some of her children had become medical professionals, but most were teachers. It was all gone within just 12 hours as the water rose and destroyed their home along with their garden upon which they depended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could see carefully saved items out in the front yard and on the upper reaches of the house, out of reach from the flood waters, containing beautiful religious imagery and lovely chandeliers. This was once a lovely home put together and was tended with tender loving care by its owners, who likely weren’t even remotely wealthy as they were subsistence farmers. Still, it was obvious that they took excellent care of what they had been blessed with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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