There are currently 166,000 residents living in the part of Donetsk Oblast controlled by Ukrainian authorities, including more than 9,300 children. In 20 communities designated as active combat zones, 19,700 people live, including 8 children.
In April of this year, 10,170 residents, including 1,500 children, were evacuated or left the Donetsk region on their own.
The progress of the evacuation in Donetsk Oblast was discussed during a traditional briefing at the regional state administration, attended by representatives of the Children’s Services and the Department of Civil Protection, Mobilization, and Defense.
Since April 1, more than 2,500 residents of the Kramatorsk community have left their homes, nearly 2,100 residents of the Sloviansk community, more than 1,600 people have left the Mykolaiv community, and 800 have left the Druzhkivka community. A total of 462 residents managed to leave the Kostiantynivka community, and 104 from the Lyman community.
According to the Child Welfare Service, 9,361 children remain in the part of Donetsk Oblast controlled by Ukrainian authorities. Eight children are living in the active combat zone: two in the city of Druzhkivka and six minors in the Mykolaiv community.
In four settlements where the forced evacuation of families with children is ongoing, 36 children remain. In addition to the two children in Druzhkivka, six children remain in the village of Serhiivka in the Andriivka community, six children in the Mykolaiv community, and 22 children in certain areas of Sloviansk.
In total, 100 children were evacuated in April from settlements where the forced evacuation of families with children had been ordered. The largest number of children were evacuated from certain districts of Sloviansk and Druzhkivka—40 and 29 minors, respectively. Fifteen children were evacuated from the Mykolaiv community, and five from the Sviatohirsk community.
Mandatory forced evacuations of families with children in the Donetsk region began on April 7, 2023. During this period, 20,378 children were evacuated from 373 settlements where such evacuations were ordered.
During a briefing, people were urged not to wait for a critical situation to arise but to volunteer for evacuation to safer regions. The evacuation process continues daily, and transit points are operational. Representatives of the police and the State Emergency Service, as well as about 10 volunteer organizations, are involved in the evacuation efforts.