The images you see on TV don’t really tell the overwhelming scope of the refugee crisis being caused by the war in Ukraine. That's according to the head of a South Coast based non-profit which is helping with relief efforts. She just spent a week at the Polish-Ukrainian border, and said the need for help is overwhelming, with an estimated 4.8 million refugees.
"I was at the main train station, just miles over the border from Ukraine," said Kerri Murray, the President of Santa Barbara-based ShelterBox USA. "It's the first stop for 20,000 people every day. It was women, children, elderly, disabled...I saw very few men...it's because men between 18 and 60 need to stay and fight."
ShelterBox is known for helping people around the world in disaster and in crisis zones with tents, and other essential living supplies. Murray was in Poland to help assess needs, and to organize the agency’s response to the humanitarian crisis.
Murray says this is one of the biggest emergencies the non-profit has faced.
The ShelterBox official says there are an estimated 2.8 million refugees who have fled Ukraine for neighboring counties. It’s believed around another two million people have been forced out of their homes to other parts of Ukraine.
Murray says Poland, and other neighbors have welcomed refugees with open arms, but are overwhelmed, and need help dealing with the crisis.
The non-profit is asking the public to step up to support the relief process with donations.
While her work has taken her to numerous disaster and crisis zones around the world, Murray says this is a heart-wrenching as anything she’s ever seen.
"It's awful. I'm a mom, and I have an 18 year old," said Murray. "I talked to a mother with a ten-year-old son. She traveled for five days from Odessa, by foot, by bus, and by train. She told me she had to leave her 22-year-old son behind to fight, and she didn't know if she was going to see him again."
You can find out more about how you can help the Santa Barbara-based non-profit’s Ukrainian relief efforts here.
