Ukraine: Helping refugees was 'sobering', says student nurse
PA MediaA student nurse who has delivered medical supplies to Ukrainian refugees in Poland has described the experience as "sobering".
Liberty Rose, 26, from the University of Portsmouth, helped crowdfund £25,000 of medical supplies for Zintegrowana Sluzba Ratownicza (ZSR).
She arrived at the non-governmental organisation's warehouse on Sunday, which has a capacity for 2,500 people.
She described the work of the ZSR volunteers there as "phenomenal".
"We're touched by their hospitality and they're touched by our endeavours to support them," she added.
The UN says Poland has so far taken in 1,204,000 refugees fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
PA MediaMiss Rose travelled to Poland with Matt Simmons, Hannah Jarvis, Don O'Leary, and Mike Petty, as part of Emsworth-based group Bridge To Unity.
Their delivery included first aid kits and bandages.
Describing the scene, she said: "It was sobering. The first refugee I saw... was a young woman just sat on the grass in the freezing cold with her head in her hands."
She added: "One man was emptying supplies from his van, throwing it to the man in the middle, who was then throwing it over to the guy who was stacking up a big tower of nappies.
"And, as you look around, there's dogs, people drinking hot drinks, eating noodles out of packets, a little boy stuck between two of three low-rise camp beds trying to play with a car."
A ZSR volunteer said she "wouldn't be surprised" if there were "a lot more people" than the warehouse's capacity staying there.
Miss Rose said the organisation was being overwhelmed with people seeking medical help, and that it desperately needed another ambulance.
Alexandra Kenchington, 37, a doctor at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth, who volunteers with Bridge To Unity, said the plan was to crowdfund enough for an ambulance and deliver that too.
"We know that is something that is going to last them a lifetime," she added.
Follow BBC South on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to south.newsonline@bbc.co.uk.
