UKRAINE: Truck of aid donated from Beara arrives in Poland

BY HELEN RIDDELL

A TRUCK load of supplies donated by individuals and businesses throughout the Beara Peninsula has been safely delivered to Poland for onward transportation to the border region to aid refuges crossing from Ukraine.

The truck, which was provided by the Castletownbere Fishermen’s Co-op was driven by local man Jason Quirke.

Accompanied by his father Tony, the two left Beara on St Patrick’s Day on the 5,000km round-trip following a send-off by well-wishers.

Jason explained that due to the worsening situation in western Ukraine and the border region, it is now considered too dangerous for Western aid trucks to drive directly to the border.

Instead they are being offloaded at Gliwice, a town in southern Poland.

Ukrainian trucks then take the supplies to the border region and into Ukraine. The two men arrived into Gliwice on Sunday and had offloaded and were on their way home by Monday morning.

Jason said the journey went well and he was delighted to be able to help and said they came across numerous aid convoys en-route.

‘We met a truck from Cork, and convoys of fire tenders which had come over from England and Portugal,’ he said.

Jason and Tony hope to be back in Beara later this week.