UNOPS and Denmark provide water tank trucks to communities affected by destruction of Kakhovka Dam

As part of an emergency reallocation of Danish funds administered by UNOPS, five water tank trucks have been procured and delivered to five communities in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The communities of Marhanets, Chervonohryhorivka, Pokrovske, Hrushivka and Nyva Trudova are located upstream of the Kakhovka Dam. They have been deprived of a regular water supply since the destruction of the dam, which caused the Kakhovka Reservoir to dry up.

“Our region has been dealing with the consequences of the terror attack on the Kakhovka dam for over a month. Two districts – Nikopol and Kryvyi Rih – are experiencing water supply issues. We are sparing no effort in addressing them, and we are building alternative water supply lines. In the meantime, drinking water needs to be delivered to the people,” stated Volodymyr Orlov, First Deputy Head of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Administration.

Until the alternative water supply lines can be built, the water trucks will be used by local authorities to increase the capacity to deliver water to people living in the affected communities.

“We are currently using four fire engines and an old water truck to deliver drinking water to people in our community,” explained Olena Krainik, Acting Village Head of Chervonohryhorivka. “The new truck has twice the capacity of the old one. It will go a long way in helping us.”

The new trucks have already made their way to the communities.

“UNOPS works to help Ukraine achieve its development ambitions and fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals. In the context of the ongoing war, that also means providing emergency assistance to meet basic needs,” said Tim Lardner, UNOPS Ukraine Country Director. “We have been able to coordinate effectively with local authorities and our partners from Denmark to make this delivery happen. We will continue to monitor developments and respond appropriately, so that the people of Ukraine can enjoy a decent quality of life.”

The UN Secretary-General described the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam as another devastating consequence of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

According to UN data, tens of thousands of people have been directly affected by flooding and up to 700,000 risk losing access to drinking water.

The Ukrainian government announced plans to build new water supply mains from alternative sources, but these will take months to complete, leaving communities in precarious conditions.