Ukraine war: Di ‘chain of kindness’ volunteers wey dey risk dia lives to save babies and elderly pipo

Dmytro Dubobikov, 32, and Yevhen Dubobikov, 35

Dmytro Dubobikov
Brothers Dmytro and Yevhen Dubobikov dey bring food and medication to pipo wey no fit leave shelters

Shakti Nekrasova panic wen she find out say her 86-year-old grandmama no get enough food.

Feeling helpless for Los Angeles, while her grandmama dey alone for her hometown for eastern Ukraine, she message friends and search social media.

Finally, she find small hope.

Although di town of Severodonetsk dey under serious shelling,and bomb hit many residential buildings, two brothers bin decide to risk dia own lives buying and delivering food and medicine daily for old pipo, di disabled, mothers, and small pikin dem.

“E dey amazing to know say good pipo still dey out dia. Na chain of kindness for di war,” Shakti tok.

Afta di brodas post wetin Dem dey do for Instagram, di news spread, and more pipo begin help Dmytro Dubobikov, 32, and Yevhen Dubobikov, 35.

Result of attacks in Severodonetsk

Instagram
Severodonetsk don dey under increased attack

Now, 30 volunteers dey deliver food and medicine to dozens of houses and shelters everyday.

Dem say dem receive hundreds of messages asking for help.

Dem dey write names, addresses, and phone numbers by hand inside one notebook, den dem go distribute dem to volunteers.

“E dey emotionally hard to recover from shifts,” Dmytro tok. “As i dey inside di car, I roll down di windows to hear di bombings. My heart freeze. But I block my fear away becos I have to continue.”

Di work no dey easy. Some of di 100,000 residents for di city dey witout water, gas, heating, and electricity for at least a week.

Dem dey live inside basements, bomb shelters, or houses wit shattered windows.

Dmytro say di pipo wey im dey reach look very scared and Dem need help.

Many no get internet connection and dem no fit contact family.

Shakti say her grandmama, Ludmila, dey feel positive, “sweet and strong”, up until 8 March, di day wey di city face heavy bombardment.

“She tell me say ground dey shake so badly di whole day and dem hit di building wey dey close to her own. She bin dey really scared and cold and tired.”

Through di kindness and bravery of di volunteers, Ludmila receive package wit bread, milk, tea, sugar, and oatmeal.

In di meantime, Shatki organise one donation page for di group wey dem dey call “Help Severodonetsk”.

“Dis no be about my grandmama. Na about di pipo wey I grow up wit, pipo my mama go school wit, all our neighbours for dia plus all di oda pipo wey dey go through dis ridiculous and terrifying war.

“Dis na about all di volunteers wey dey risk dia life as Dem dey try to deliver food regardless of bombing and shooting,” she tok for one video for Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca5VkNFDcI1/

At first, di volunteers bin dey buy food from supermarkets.

Now dem dey go straight to di wholesale warehouses, and dem dey hope say no be all of dem for good as many don already close.

“Di city dey severely damaged. Fires no dey ever stop. If ten shops open tomorrow, we go happy,” Dmytro tok.

On Sunday, according to one statement by govnor of Luhansk region, Serhiy Haidai, dem damage dozens of residential apartments and many catch fire afta Russian shelling, wey also church.

Dis one prevent evacuation buses wey suppose leave since morning from leaving, according to Oha Haidai.

Later for afternoon, about 1,600 successfully comot from Severodonetsk and nearby cities, however.

Severodonetsk na mainly Russian-speaking city for Luhansk region.

Wen Russian-backed separatists take control of di city of Luhansk (di region administrative centre) for 2014, Severodonetsk become di acting centre.

E become target of regular attacks, despite ceasefire agreement.

Population in Severodonetsk receiving food from the brothers and other volunteers

Yevhen Dubobikov
Pipo for Severodonetsk receive food from di brothers and other volunteers

Dis mean say e dey “very important for Russians from a symbolic point of view,” Valeriy Kravchenko, a senior research fellow from the National Institute for Strategic Studies for Ukraine tok.

“Dem need to show say dem fit reach di administrative borders of di whole Luhansk region. If dem capture Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, and Rubizhne [nearby cities], dem fit dey able to tok am.”

Before invading Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin announce say dem recognise di self-proclaimed “Luhansk People’s Republic” along wit di “Donetsk People’s Republic”, including dia “constitutions.”

For Lysychansk, one small, but similar network of volunteers dey deliver baby food and napkins for mothers wit babies.

“Sometimes e dey dey scary, but den I go breathe in and out, and pipo gratitude make me brave,” Elena Faizulina, 41, wey dey operate one network wit two of her friends tok.

She continue to help odas even wen dem don destroy her parents flat.

Thankfully, dem find refuge for one shelter.

Wit di serious increasing of shelling and di close presence of Russia forces, everybody work dey get harder.

Di brodas for Severodonetsk and dia group dye struggle to find petrol to fill dia cars.

And even though dem wan help villages around di city, dem no fit reach dem becos some roads dey blocked.

“Pipo dey call desperately, but we no fit reach dia. E dey devastating,” Dmytro tok.

Dem say dem feel dem don abandon dia region.

For social media, posts dey call for more attention, humanitarian help, and evacuation.

“Tins dey very scary for Severodonetsk. We no know how long we go dey able to keep dis up.”