On the eve of July 20, massive explosions rocked the Khortytskyi district of the city of Zaporizhzhia. People were sleeping peacefully in their homes when the enemy unleashed fire upon their homes with multiple launch rocket systems and drones. The attack caused fires and damaged private houses and a multi-story apartment building. Three women were injured.
Just a few days after the attack, the team from the Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services,” in close cooperation with the CWG (Cash Working Group) and local authorities of the city of Zaporizhzhia, promptly conducted an in-person registration of 24 households whose homes were damaged by the attack.
In late July, 60 residents of Zaporizhzhia received rapid response multi-purpose cash assistance. The assistance amount was 10,800 hryvnias per person. Nina (name changed for security reasons) received financial assistance from the Foundation. Along with her 86-year-old mother, she lives in a building that neighbors the site of the attack. She recalls that the strike occurred at night, while everyone was asleep.
“Explosions are not uncommon in Zaporizhzhia, but every time we are scared as if it were the first. Our balcony is old, probably installed when the building was first constructed. It has simple glass panes. They were all blown out, and the balcony units and the wall were damaged. We were very lucky that the windows in the room next to the balcony remained intact, because that’s where we were at the time. My mother is very old and has limited mobility, she barely gets out of bed. I was with her the whole time. We cried together and prayed to stay alive,” says Nina.
The woman plans to use the assistance she received to repair the balcony. Currently, technicians are taking all the necessary measurements.
“We won’t be able to completely fix the balcony because it’s very expensive. For our family of two retired women, it’s simply an unaffordable amount. If it weren’t for your help, we wouldn’t have done anything at all. But now we can fix it all up. Thank you for taking care of us,” notes Ms. Nina.
The family of Mykhailo (name changed for security reasons) also suffered significant damage from the shelling. When the attack began, he and his wife were at home but thankfully managed to run out of the apartment.
“We survived, but the apartment was damaged. The entire balcony is riddled with shrapnel, the windows were blown out, and the frame is ruined. Now that we’ve received funds from you, we can at least fix everything as much as possible. We want to do at least minimal repairs, to seal all the gaps. Since it’s summer now, we still have time to prepare for winter and the cold,” the man explains.
This is not the first time the project has provided financial assistance to Zaporizhzhia residents affected by shelling. The Charity Foundation’s team closely monitors events in the frontline territories and promptly provides support to people in need. In addition to multi-purpose cash assistance, the project has conducted distributions for residents of Zaporizka and Khersonska Oblasts, including: hygiene kits for women, kits for people with disabilities, NFI kits, and individual hygiene kits. For people living in close proximity to the front line and facing water supply issues, a distribution of drinking water was organized.
This assistance was made possible through the implementation of the Lifesaving Response to Protection Risks and Humanitarian Needs of Conflict-Affected Population in South and South-East of Ukraine project by CF “SSS” in partnership with the international humanitarian organization CARE, with financial support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.