Snapshots from our response to the latest humanitarian crisis in Ukraine ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌







Dear friend,

The June 6 destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine triggered a large-scale humanitarian and environmental disaster — creating urgent new challenges for hundreds of thousands of people who have already endured more than 15 months of war.

Families across the region remain displaced due to flooding that submerged entire towns and villages. Clean water continues to be a critical need for the 700,000 people who relied on water from the Kakhovka reservoir.

Mercy Corps has been responding in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war in February 2022. Our teams and partners continue to work across the affected region, meeting urgent needs like shelter and clean water, and providing direct cash assistance so people can purchase the items they need most.

Your support fuels our work helping communities in crisis in Ukraine and 40+ countries worldwide. Thank you.

This update provides a few snapshots of our emergency response — and the people who have been affected by this latest disaster in Ukraine.

After the flood: Our immediate mobilization
Mercy Corps team members unload supplies at a shelter in Kherson Oblast, Ukraine, where flooding has driven many local residents from their homes.
Immediately following the dam’s destruction, Mercy Corps mobilized our team and partners to help displaced families who sought shelter in schools, hospitals, and train stations.

Within days, we were distributing ready-to-eat food kits to evacuation shelters in Kherson, and together with our local partner organizations, we started registering households for emergency cash. As our response continues, we will maintain focus on helping the most vulnerable people, including the elderly and people living with disabilities.

Mercy Corps’ partnership model has been central to our response in Ukraine. Having partners with pre-established contacts in the affected areas has been essential to our rapid response.

In partnership: Faith, Hope, Love
Rodion (gray shirt) is a social worker with Vira, Nadia, Lyubov (which translates to "Faith, Hope, Love"), a Mercy Corps partner that mobilized following the destruction of the nearby Nova Kakhovka dam.
Rodion, a social worker with one of our local partner organizations, explained the importance of cash assistance in the aftermath of this emergency: "When we ask about what they need: clothes, food, medical help, the first aid that people ask for is cash, because they can distribute the money according to their needs. They say they need to rent a dwelling, travel, find a job, and visit a doctor as needed."

Rodion described meeting people who were in shock after enduring flooding and frequent shelling. "Till the very last moment they believe that everything will be fine with them and do not want at all to leave their places, because they hope that the water will flow off in a couple of days… But those who arrived here understand that they will not be able to return in the nearest future, though they all want to."

Evacuating from an island, in search of work
Igor and Lyubov, a husband and wife who fled to Mykolaiv after the dam broke, arrived at the train station with just a few small bags after evacuating their home.
In addition to claiming homes, the flooding has also cost people their livelihoods across southern Ukraine. Lyubov and Igor, who are receiving cash assistance from Mercy Corps, fled to live with their daughter in Mykolaiv. The flooding left Igor without work. Lyubov has already lost her job due to frequent shelling in the area.

"We came here with hope to find something," Lyubov said. "We are planning to stay in Mykolaiv as long as Kherson is under shelling.... We are going to stay with our daughter for now. We plan to spend this cash assistance for living, food, and rent because we don't have a job right now. Thank you so much."

Right now, we know that the immense humanitarian needs across southern Ukraine will remain long after the water recedes. In particular, the ripple effects of the dam disaster on the agricultural sector, a pillar of Ukraine’s economy, will be severe and long-lasting.

The compassion and generosity of people like you fuels the work of our teams and partners to make lasting change in 40+ countries. Now, as urgent needs skyrocket around the world, please consider making your first gift to support our global humanitarian response today.
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Thank you for your commitment to families in places like Ukraine, Syria, Somalia — and in communities around the world where Mercy Corps is helping to build a bolder, brighter future for us all.

Sincerely,

Kyle DeGraw
Head of Media, Europe