Ukraine dam breach: Hull4Ukraine charity to send aid to region

Thirteen people are now known to have died, according to officials

A lorry carrying aid for survivors of a dam breach in southern Ukraine will set off from Hull later this month.

Both Ukraine and Russia blame each other for sabotaging the Kakhovka dam in the Kherson region on Tuesday.

So far, 13 people are known to have died, according to Ukrainian and Russian-installed officials.

Ana McBride, from the charity Hull4Ukraine, said a lorry would leave East Yorkshire on 19 June for Ladom in Poland.

Local residents wait for an evacuation train at a railway station in Kherson

From there, a fleet of smaller trucks will take aid - expected to fill 33 pallets - to some of the regions worst-affected by the breach.

Ms McBride said: "Conditions are terrible. As well as a humanitarian disaster, with homes swept away, there is an ecological disaster. Water sources have been polluted. Dead animals are everywhere.

"This area is very flat. It is agricultural land. There was nowhere for the water to go. In parts, water is 3-4m deep."

Ms McBride appealed to local businesses for supplies or discounts on key items.

She added: "We are in urgent need of water purification tablets. Pet and animal food is also in short supply."

Hull4Ukraine has also teamed up with Leeds' Ukrainian community who have also pledged to pass on donations.

Since March, Hull4Ukraine has delivered 12 trucks to the country, Ms McBride said.

Satellite images verified by the BBC show the extent of the breach

In an update on the Telegram messaging app on Friday, Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine's interior minister, said 13 people were missing and more than 2,400 people have been rescued in the Kherson region so far.

• Details of suggested items to donate can be found on Huull4Ukriane's website here. Donations can be dropped off at 16 Whitefriargate, Hull, from Monday to Friday, 11:00 BST to 14:00 BST.