What’s happening in Ukraine's Pokrovsk region and how you can help

Key services, including supermarkets, banks, and other social services, have begun their own evacuations from Pokrovsk.

For weeks, CARE and its partner organization Avalyst continued to operate in the city, distributing 1,300 hygiene kits to the elderly and those with limited mobility. But recently the escalation caused the center to provide online consultations only.

CARE is still providing psychological and legal assistance for evacuees, as well as preparing urgent cash support.

“Women and children enduring relentless shelling are in desperate need of assistance and reassurance that they will not be abandoned in these dire conditions,” said Darya Romanenko, Area Director of CARE Ukraine in Eastern Ukraine.

“Many have been forced to evacuate repeatedly, deepening their trauma. We value the commitment of our partners who remain on the ground, providing vital support despite the perilous situation. We are also actively developing contingency plans to ensure their continued efforts from alternative locations like Sloviansk or Dnipro.”

Alyona Pylypchuk, Protection Coordinator at Avalyst, emphasized the importance of their ongoing support. “We are prepared to continue our work for residents during this challenging time. People need our psychological and legal advice so they do not feel abandoned in their time of trouble.”

Olga, an internally displaced person from Kurakhovo now residing in Pokrovsk, described the situation: “It became frightening for my children and me. After consulting a psychologist provided by Avalyst, my children’s condition improved. The center’s anti-explosion shutters make me feel more secure about their safety.”

CARE is urging the international community to step up support for the humanitarian response, emphasizing the urgent need for aid, safety, and reassurance for those who have lost everything.

With financial support from the European Union, CARE and Avalyst have supported more than 5,000 people since the Pokrovsk community center opened in September 2023. The center receives up to 15 requests daily, with figures rising as the conflict intensifies.

According to Kravets, the evacuation is particularly difficult for people with medical conditions.

“In 95% of cases, a doctor will go with such people for evacuation,” he says. “Our ambulance always goes, because if a person needs to be transported lying down, we cannot just put them in a passenger bus. Also, thanks to CARE’s support, we have hygiene kits, diapers for adults and children.”

Another complication: pets.

“When people say that they have a dog or a cat, I can’t refuse them or ask them to leave their pet,” Kravets says. “People often realize that it will be extremely difficult for them to settle in a new place with animals, and so they make a difficult decision to leave their cat or dog to their neighbors. As for the resettlement, in most cases, shelterers do not object to the presence of animals. Another thing is the regulated conditions for keeping them.
Of course, there are some shelters that do not allow pets, but this is extremely rare. In general, about 30% of evacuations are trips with animals.”

A similar situation is unfolding elsewhere. Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Dnipro and other cities suffer from daily shelling, affecting both civilian and critical infrastructure, creating new humanitarian challenges, especially with the approaching cold weather.

The destruction of essential infrastructure threatens to leave communities without access to heat, electricity, and clean water, increasing the risks for the most vulnerable groups, particularly women and girls .

Due to the worsening situation here in Pokrovsk, a curfew from 3 p.m. to 11 a.m. has been imposed, severely restricting access to basic services. The Community Center in Pokrovsk, supported by CARE, has ceased operations for now, with specialists providing psychological and legal advice online as best they can.

CARE, alongside partners from Angels of Salvation, is supporting the evacuation of the elderly and people with reduced mobility.

“There is not a single day when we do not evacuate people from that region,” said Kravets. “We evacuate many elderly people who are unable to leave on their own. On the peak day, our hotline recorded 42 applications, most from the Pokrovsk district.”

Kravets described the emotional toll on evacuees, many of whom leave without speaking, processing the loss of their homes quietly. “The largest category of people are those who just go and say nothing.

“They quietly talk to themselves about the life they’ve left behind and how to live on.”

How to help: