More than 50 special teams from National Police and Emergency Service conducting evacuations from dangerous areas in six regions of Ukraine – Interior Ministry

More than 50 special teams from the National Police and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine are conducting evacuations from dangerous areas in six regions of Ukraine, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Oleksiy Serheyev reported on Monday during a briefing on the status of evacuations from frontline regions.

The press briefing was attended by Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Oleksiy Serheyev, First Deputy Chairman of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine Vitaliy Myroniuk, Deputy Minister of Communities and Territories Development Oleksiy Ryabikin, and Deputy Minister of Social Policy, Family, and Unity of Ukraine Tetyana Kiriyenko.

During the briefing, Serheyev reported that evacuation measures are currently ongoing in six regions of Ukraine (Donetsk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, and Chernihiv).

"Twenty-four special evacuation teams from the National Police of Ukraine, the White Angel, and 29 teams from the State Emergency Service, the Phoenix, are involved in this process ... The White Angel evacuation teams currently include 153 police officers who are appropriately prepared to work in extremely difficult conditions (trained to provide medical and psychological assistance, well-versed in the area, and interacting with local governments, other emergency services, and volunteers)," Serheyev was quoted as saying on the Ministry of Internal Affairs' website on Tuesday.

According to him, the groups are provided with armored vehicles, medicines and first aid supplies, communications equipment, electronic warfare systems, and other necessary equipment for transporting people under heavy shelling.

"During the evacuation, White Angel teams provided medical assistance to 644 people, and they transported 672 people to healthcare facilities from areas unserved by ambulances. White Angel police teams are also delivering humanitarian aid to vulnerable regions. To date, 1.2 tonnes of medicine, 754 tonnes of food, and 76 tonnes of drinking water have been delivered," the deputy minister noted.

First Deputy Head of the State Emergency Service Vitaliy Myroniuk reported that 29 Phoenix groups are currently involved in the evacuation.

"These teams include medical personnel, psychologists, sappers, and other State Emergency Service personnel who work both during evacuation operations and at transit points. The Phoenix teams are equipped with 38 specialized vehicles (including 24 armored vehicles) equipped with electronic warfare and interception systems. They are also equipped with personal protective equipment and other necessary evacuation equipment. Overall, the vehicles at the disposal of the Phoenix special rescue teams can evacuate approximately 330 people at a time," he noted.

Serheyev also spoke about the most common difficulties faced by National Police and State Emergency Service personnel during evacuation operations.

"Evacuation teams ... under the enemy's tight drone surveillance ... have no right to stop—any delay could cost lives. Law enforcement and rescue workers are convincing elderly people who don't want to leave their homes, saving children, evacuating the wounded and animals, and evacuating entire families from the shelling. Each such operation is a fight not only against the enemy, but also against despair, human fear, and attachment to one's home ... The life and health of citizens are our greatest treasure. Evacuating adults and children from the zone of constant shelling is our duty," he concluded.