Based on numerous requests from our friends serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, we have launched the "Ambulances" project. This was the purchase of used vehicles adapted to transport the wounded, whether lying or sitting. In the first phase we tried to get vehicles as a sponsorship donation, however we were not successful. Therefore, we decided to use the possibility of community crowdfunding, specifically for the Donio.cz platform. We launched the collection on Donio.cz on 2 August 2022 and it closed on 31 August 2022. Over 373,000 CZK were raised (simple table of income and expenses below).
With the funds raised we purchased three ambulances. These were two Ford Transit 2×4 vehicles and one slightly larger VW Transporter 4×4 vehicle. The vehicles were thoroughly inspected by our technicians prior to purchase to ensure that they would last for some time in Ukraine and be of real use. It took us a little over three weeks to purchase the vehicles, the paperwork associated with the purchase and transport, and the preparation of the transport. However, the vehicles did not go to Ukraine empty. We used their transport capacity to carry as much medical material as we could load into them. Several companies and donor groups responded to our request for medical supplies, which we shared on social media (see the list of corporate-level donors at the end of this article). Small donors also helped significantly, such as Jan M., who funded the purchase of several hundred military pressure bandages, Zuzka L., who supplied us with a crate of material for paramedics, and Ondřej Č., now a member of our organization, who got us dozens of medical devices, including four pieces of lung ventilators.
The preparatory phase of the event itself took place from 15 September 2022 to 25 September 2022. During these days, we concentrated the ambulances in a space provided by a friend to park the vehicles and store the donated material. At this stage, we also transported pallets of donated material from donors (thanks to a sponsorship donation from a transport company) and picked up two loaner vans, one from our friend Jan K. and the other from Mamut, whose company has kindly loaned us a vehicle again. As an organization, our focus is to make sure that all funds are spent on aid to Ukraine and the costs associated with that aid, e.g. fuel, tolls, insurance and servicing the vehicles in Ukraine in the event of a breakdown (we do not have funds for our own vans and do not want to use funds from our supporters for these vehicles).
On 25/9/2022 we met in the storage area and loaded the vehicles. It was a classy happening, which was attended by most of the Team 4 Ukraine members. Together we carried out the last paper war, as we call the administrative preparation of documents for customs. We left for Ukraine on 26 September 2022. Our journey was uneventful, we spent the night in Kiev, Pavlohrad, and finally on 29 September 2022 we handed over to the security company of the 66th Field Hospital somewhere between Pavlohrad and Kramatorsk eight pallets of disposable surgical sets, surgical gowns and drapes, twenty extrication stretchers, several hundred disinfectant gels and all medical equipment. Vehicles from different parts of the field hospital converged at a moment's notice for the materials and especially for the medical apparatus. During a quick breakfast, which we were treated to on the spot, the hospital commander, head nurse and security company commander and I arranged further cooperation and discussed what was most needed on the spot and what to focus on next.
We continued on to Kramatorsk, which had been shelled just a few dozen minutes before our arrival. Here we handed over a WV Transporter 4×4 ambulance named "Svoboda" to paramedics from the 54th Independent Mechanised Brigade. Next, we handed over hygiene and rations for the little ones to the local CIMIC center, which will ensure the transport and distribution of the material to the heavily tested Bachmut. We also handed over stretchers, disinfectant gels and some military equipment, which we also received as a donation (ceramic plates of IV resistance, collimators, and combat boots) from a group of enthusiasts.
From Kramatorsk we already continued to Pavlohrad, where we spent another night and distributed military material to another military unit. In the morning we arrived in Kiev, where we gradually handed over the remaining two ambulances named "Hope" and "Faith". Each vehicle headed to one unit. Although they did not wish to be named, we can state that one operates in the Kharkiv direction and the other in the Kherson direction.
Despite some problems with the vehicles, we all returned safely to Prague on the morning of October 3, 2022. In the end, eight vehicles (three of them ambulances), fifteen Czechs (all of whom had taken leave for this expedition) and one of our friends from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who also took a long-saved leave of absence and accompanied us instead of meeting his family, took part in the whole event.
We are already working on other projects. Finally, we would like to say a big thank you to all the donors, small, large and those who could not contribute but still spread the word about the project on social media. Namely, we would like to thank the following companies for their help:
PENAP s.r.o. for 8 pallets of medical supplies for the ambulance operation and another X pallets for other projects.
Portal www.bioruze.cz for a pallet of antibacterial gels.
Carpenter Jan Stiburek and his friends for several hundred stretchers for the ambulance operation and other projects.
Winepro s.r.o. for the loan of a van for this and previous operations and for a sponsorship donation of 50 000,- CZK for fuel for transporting vehicles to Ukraine.
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