Private wells have been contaminated, boreholes, water towers, and pumping systems have been destroyed, and equipment has long been obsolete. After the Kakhovka dam was destroyed, communities near the Dnipro riverbed and its tributaries faced a critical drinking and industrial water situation. The constant shelling by the Russians further aggravates the issue. People simply have nothing to drink or cook with.
The situation with drinking water is critical in the Daryivska, Kalynivska, and Beryslavska communities of Khersonska Oblast. Residents of the villages, under constant shelling, endangering themselves, have to fetch water from the nearest settlements. In Mykolaivska Oblast, the situation is somewhat better, but there are still villages without access to drinking water, such as Shmidtove in the Shevchenkivska community.
– “After the occupation and active hostilities related to the occupation and de-occupation, the aggressor caused significant damage to the central water supply system, destroying all water towers and almost all water supply networks. After the destruction of the dam, the wells are unusable. At the same time, the community is now home to about 1,400 people who need water every day,” said Maksym Kozhemiaka, head of the Kalynivka village military administration.
Given the acute need, the Foundation has started working to provide drinking water to those who need it most. From March to the end of the year, we will deliver water to the villages and place it in special barrels. If the villages do not have such barrels, we will help to purchase them.
– Unfortunately, we cannot deliver water everywhere because the situation with shelling in the Beryslavska community is very dangerous. We cannot send our colleagues there and put their lives in real danger,” says Anton, the Foundation’s engineering communications specialist, “But we will do it where possible. It is very important for us to help Kherson residents with access to drinking water.”
The assistance will be provided within the framework of the Providing Multi-Sectoral Humanitarian Assistance to Conflict-Affected Populations in Ukraine project, implemented by the CF SSS together with the humanitarian organization CARE Ukraine and the Response Consortium. The program is funded by the USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA).