Samaritan's Purse has teams on the ground preparing to help fleeing Ukrainians.
People are fleeing Ukraine into Romania. Samaritan’s Purse is helping refugees there as part of our global response.
UPDATE (March 6): The DC-8 landed safely in Poland and materials for the Emergency Field Hospital have been transported to Ukraine. The Samaritan’s Purse team is now in the process of setting up the facility. Based on recent assessments, it has been decided to increase the capacity of our Ukraine field hospital. We are planning for two operating rooms, with capacity for 14 major surgeries or 30 minor surgeries per day. There will be four wards, with 50 inpatient beds, and an emergency room that handle 100 patients per day. Also included are four intensive care unit beds and four step-down beds. Additional equipment is scheduled to be flown to Poland and taken into Ukraine later this week.
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(March 4) Samaritan’s Purse has deployed an Emergency Field Hospital to Ukraine.
On Friday, March 4, the Samarian’s Purse DC-8 cargo plane based in Greensboro, North Carolina airlifted the initial stages of the field hospital along with Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) members, including doctors, nurses, and logistics and set-up personnel. Once the plane lands in Poland, the field hospital will then be transported overland to Ukraine where it will provide specialized trauma care to people impacted by the conflict.
The field hospital is equipped with an operating room (up to 10 surgeries per day), an ICU, an emergency room, a pharmacy, and it has its own water and sanitation system. As many as 100 patients a day can be seen at this hospital, and it will be operated by more than 50 staff (medical and non-medical). The situation on the ground is fluid and changing rapidly, but the hospital could be operational early next week.
If you are interested in joining our DART roster to be a part of these types of disaster responses, click here to apply.
“Ukrainian families are hurting and in desperate need of physical aid and prayer during this difficult time,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse. “We are deploying life-saving medical care to aid people who are suffering. We want to meet the needs of these families in their darkest moments while pointing them to the light and hope of Jesus Christ.”
Samaritan’s Purse already has disaster response specialists on the ground in Poland, Romania, and Moldova, and we plan to send two medical clinics on an additional flight next week. Assessment teams continue to work to identify the most strategic locations for these units. These health clinics will equip Samaritan’s Purse medical staff to meet minor trauma needs and provide general medical care for some 200 patients each day.
In addition to our medical work, Samaritan’s Purse is also preparing to distribute food inside Ukraine.
“We want to meet the needs of these families in their darkest moments while pointing them to the light and hope of Jesus Christ.”—Franklin Graham
The Eastern European nation remains in deep crisis as fighting continues to spread and escalate, with deadly violence hitting the capital, Kyiv, and the second-largest city, Kharkiv. The United Nations reports that more than 1 million refugees, primarily women and children, have already left Ukraine seeking shelter in nearby nations.
The Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 takes off from Greensboro carrying the Emergency Field Hospital bound for Ukraine.
Samaritan’s Purse also has many ministry partners inside Ukraine, including a robust outreach through Operation Christmas Child. As conflict erupted, we were in the process of distributing 600,000 gift-filled shoeboxes this year. We remain in contact with churches in the country to see how we can assist in this volatile situation. Please pray for God to grant them strength and protection.
Franklin Graham asked for a special day of prayer on Feb. 27, asking Almighty God to work in the hearts of leaders and bring an end to this deadly conflict. He said, “Let’s lift up in prayer those who are enduring these dark days filled with uncertainty, fear, hardship, loss, and suffering. May they know the comfort, presence, peace, and protection of God who is a ‘refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble’” (Psalm 46:1). [via Facebook].
Please continue to pray for the people of Ukraine and for our teams as they seek ways to help in Jesus’ Name.
This article was published on Feb. 25 and updated on March 6.
Samaritan’s Purse is responding to Eastern Europe as Ukrainians flee their country amid fighting and growing violence.
