The first donations collected in the Landes arrived in Ukraine on the evening of Wednesday March 9 by truck after passing through Bordeaux and then Strasbourg. Civil Protection was able to transport 150 tonnes of donations collected throughout France. In the Landes, the donation campaign ends this Sunday, March 13. It is set up in partnership with the Association of Mayors of France.
Town halls overwhelmed by donations
In one week, donations have poured into town halls to the point that some of them no longer have space to store the goods. In Soustons, for example, 70 cubic meters of donations are stored in the premises. This represents about fifteen pallets ready to be transported. A few days before the collection, the Civil Protection asks the Landais to no more clothes or medicine. It is therefore appealing for essential donations. “Avoid giving anything that is clothing and medication. It is rather necessary to privilege hygiene or first aid kits: bandages, tourniquets but also soap, razors, hygienic protections. We also need electrical equipment, sockets, extension cords, batteries or even old coffee makers.“explains Baptiste Campagne, the general secretary of Civil Protection in the Landes and co-coordinator of the Ukraine Mission in the department.
Extension cords, coffee makers and soap for emergency shelters in Poland
The medical equipment is intended for Ukrainian caregivers. It must be routed through a humanitarian corridor to Kiev. The electrical and hygiene products will be used to set up an emergency accommodation center for Ukrainian refugees in Poland. All the donations collected in the Landes will be sent to the Bordeaux logistics base on Monday March 21 where they will be repackaged before being sent to Poland or Ukraine.
Don’t forget financial donations
“The financial donation is very important because it allows us to carry out our mission. Donations allow the payment of gasoline to Ukraine and the reservation of trucks in particular“adds Baptiste Campagne. If you want to make a donation for UKraine, it’s here.