Journalist: Evacuation from Hlukhiv in Sumy Region is poorly organised

The day before, the Shostka and Konotop districts of Sumy Region announced the mandatory evacuation of five settlements, including the town of Hlukhiv and the villages of Svesa and Esman. Journalist and editor of Kordon.Media, Olesya Borovyk, described the situation in the region.

She reported this on Hromadske Radio.

«If we consider two years of full-scale war, significant shelling with consequences only began in these areas relatively recently. For example, in the village of Svesa, people were unaware of shelling until this summer. The same applies to Hlukhiv. Now, the Russians are actively shelling the town from the air using guided aerial bombs, multiple rocket launchers, Grad, Uragan, and Tornado-C at long range», — the correspondent said.

According to her, the forced evacuation of the Esman community has been in place since March this year. Since then, «there have been more injuries and civilian casualties.» Now, it also affects the center of Esman.

«But while people have been gradually leaving Esman and Svesa since the start of the full-scale invasion, residents of Hlukhiv have been reluctant to leave», — she emphasized.

Borovyk said that, according to Hlukhiv’s head, Nadiia Vailo, there are about 30,000 people in the city.

«No one knows where to evacuate so many people, not even the mayor. The locals are not planning to leave. On the contrary, there are calls on social media to defend the city rather than evacuate it. This stance is supported by the authorities», — the journalist added.

Officials also confirmed there are no systematic evacuation buses.

«Since September 3, when the evacuation from three settlements was announced, there have only been announcements and door-to-door visits informing people of the possibility. But in reality, there are no accommodations for 30,000 people, neither in Sumy nor elsewhere. There are spots available in Sumy dormitories, but they are primarily occupied by evacuees from border communities near the Russian Kursk region, where airstrikes have intensified, prompting people to leave», — she stressed.

According to the Civil-Military Administration, only 21 children and their parents have been evacuated from Hlukhiv.

When asked whether the intensity of shelling in Sumy Region has changed after months of fighting in the Kursk region, Borovyk said:

«Yes, the number of attacks has increased significantly. However, the Joint Action Command (JAC) claims that the Kursk operation has led to a decrease in artillery attacks. This may be true, but only in areas where Sumy borders the Kursk region. Sumy also borders the Bryansk and Belgorod regions, where artillery remains active. Additionally, airstrikes have increased, including on Sumy and the Sumy community.»

Borovyk also reported that forest fires caused by shelling in the region are being contained.

«Although, in fact, one-third of Sumy’s forests are inaccessible, either within a five-kilometer zone where foresters are completely prohibited from working, or a ten-kilometer zone where working is highly dangerous. These areas are turning into dumps of unexploded Russian ordnance, which later creates mined areas. Furthermore, it is not always possible to reach forest fires caused by shelling in time. Foresters often work on their own because SES fire brigades, evacuated from the five-kilometer border zone, only respond to fires after the shelling ends. This, of course, increases the area affected by fires.»

Evacuation in Sumy Region and Hlukhiv

As a reminder, Hlukhiv and four other settlements in the Sumy region have been included in the list of areas subject to mandatory evacuation. This was announced by the Sumy Regional Military Administration on Thursday, September 5.

According to the report, the head of the regional military administration, Volodymyr Artyukh, discussed priority evacuation measures during a meeting of the Shostka district’s coordination headquarters in Hlukhiv. The meeting highlighted the increased intensity of attacks on Hlukhiv, Esman, and Svesa, which are currently experiencing the most severe shelling from Russian forces.

Due to the destruction of infrastructure and housing, regional authorities decided to expand the list of settlements for evacuation. Five settlements were added:

• Hlukhiv (which had more than 32,000 residents before the war)
• Esman
• Svesa
• Manukhivka
• Ivanivka

The first three settlements are in the Shostka district, while the latter two are in the Konotop district.

The evacuation from Hlukhiv will occur in several stages. According to Volodymyr Artyukh, educational and social institutions, including boarding schools, facilities for the disabled, schools, cultural institutions, and museums, will be evacuated first.

«The decree clearly outlines which institutions and facilities must be evacuated in the first stage, allowing the relevant services to carry out the second stage of mandatory evacuation. People can refuse evacuation in writing, but then their lives are in God’s hands», — Artyukh stated.

In August, regional authorities announced the mandatory evacuation of 23 settlements in five communities of the Sumy district.