<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/08/ukraine-villagers-flee-flooding-kakhovka-dam-attack>
"It took 24 hours for the flood waters to come to Bilozerka, a frontline
village 8 miles west of Kherson. When they did, in a 90-minute rush early on
Wednesday, they flooded out about 24 cottages in two streets by the waterline –
the fast rising levels forcing Oleksandr to flee his home of 22 years.
“I was hiding in the attic, it was probably 4am, and I realised I had to swim
back,” said Oleksandr, looking out to his house from the new waterline. His
dog, Zhanka, followed him into the water, only to drown from the effort of
trying to reach safety.
Oleksandr was waiting for an inflatable boat, paddled by aid workers, to take
him back to the house where he hoped to see what he could rescue, or find his
goat and other animals. A few minutes later, he returned empty handed, and
cuddled another dog amid a bout of tears, forced to wait for the flood waters
to recede.
In a normal summer, Bilozerka would be an attractive country location by a lake
that links up to the Dnipro River, 45 miles downstream from the now ruined
Kakhovka dam. But the flood water, bringing with it garbage and driftwood, has
brought dirty ruin to parts of a village already at the centre of the 15-month
war.
An artillery duel goes on in the distance as aid workers from a US charity,
Global Empowerment Mission, hand out food parcels and try to work out, with
local officials, what help the village will need in the coming weeks. It is
hard for visitors not to be distracted by the explosions, though in this case,
they are perhaps 10 miles off.
A nervousness hangs over the operation, which lasts a couple of hours. Two
artillery rounds land just as the aid convoy arrives, white smoke rising up
from nearby fields, prompting a security pause. It is decided it is safe to
continue, but at another point, when too large a crowd has gathered to talk to
aid workers and journalists, we are hurried on in case a missile were to
strike."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
