November 2, 2026
Featured photograph: Natalia inside her damaged home in Sumy Oblast, August 16, 2024. Genya Savilov / AFP.
On Saturday morning, a Russian drone struck the balcony of a tenth-floor apartment in Sumy. The owners were away when it happened. Their cat narrowly survived.
When the owner returned, much of his apartment had been destroyed. Speaking with a reporter from Suspilne, he said he didn’t know where he was going to live.
Elsewhere in Sumy, residents were returning to homes damaged during the overnight attacks. Tetiana received a telephone call from neighbors telling her that an explosion had blown out the windows. When she arrived, she found the windows gone and the roof punctured by fragments. Her neighbors had escaped injury, in part because their heavy curtains had stopped much of the flying glass.
Another resident, Volodymyr, had been asleep when an explosion woke him. He went outside and found a fire burning nearby. He was concerned that it might spread to other buildings, particularly with the dry autumn leaves covering the ground.
His car had been damaged by fragments, as had a small three-wheeled vehicle. Replacing or repairing them is an expense that many families can no longer afford.
The attacks continued through Saturday night and into Sunday. A 68-year-old woman was injured when a drone struck an unused petrol station. Nearby apartment buildings suffered damage to windows and balconies. By Sunday morning, municipal crews and volunteers were clearing debris and helping residents secure their homes.
For many of these families, the immediate concern is getting the windows replaced and the roof repaired before the weather turns colder. Materials are expensive, and finding someone available to do the work can be difficult. In some cases, residents are trying to repair damage that was repaired once or twice before.
There is also the question of whether to spend what little money remains on a house that may be struck again.
On Friday, the humanitarian organization People in Peril published an account of its recent work in the Bochechky community near Konotop, in Sumy Oblast. The organization had replaced 85 damaged windows in 19 homes, assisting 42 residents, most of whom had previously been displaced by the war.
One of those residents is Hanna Kadura, 74, who lives alone. A drone explosion near her house broke the windows, damaged the walls, and tore doors from their frames.
Hanna receives a pension of approximately 4,000 hryvnias a month. There was little possibility of her paying for the repairs herself.
She doesn’t want to leave. At 74, she wonders where she would go.
We hear much the same thing during our visits to the villages of northeastern Ukraine. People have spent their lives in these communities. They know their neighbors, and often their families have lived there for generations. Leaving means abandoning much of what remains of the lives they’ve built.
During recent trips east of Poltava and toward Sumy, we’ve noticed growing concern about whether humanitarian assistance will continue through the winter. Several residents have told us they’re considering leaving, not necessarily because they want to, but because they’re no longer confident that they can manage another winter without help.
And we understand their concern. Over the past several months, we’ve seen fewer organizations operating in some of these areas. Supplies are more difficult to obtain, and there are simply not enough resources to meet the growing need.
Working Together Has Always Been Part of Our Work
The repairs carried out by People in Peril in Bochechky are a good example of the kind of assistance being provided by organizations throughout the region. It is also an example of why cooperation among aid groups matters so much.
Care4Ukraine has been working alongside other humanitarian organizations and local volunteer groups for almost five years. We know many of the people involved, where they’re working, and the kinds of assistance they provide. We keep in contact, exchange information, and help one another when we can.
This cooperation is a regular part of our work.
If a volunteer group is already replacing windows in a village, there is little point in sending another group to do exactly the same thing. But they may be short of window materials or plastic sheeting to cover damaged openings until permanent repairs can be made. They may need another vehicle to transport supplies, or simply a few more volunteers to help finish the work.
Sometimes we can provide what is missing. Other times, we’re the ones asking for help. Knowing who is working in a particular area, and what resources they have available, can make an enormous difference in how quickly assistance reaches people.
We’ve built these relationships over years of working in the same communities. They allow relatively small organizations to accomplish work that none of us could manage alone.
What worries us now is that this network is becoming smaller.
Some organizations have reduced their activities, while others have withdrawn from areas where they once provided regular assistance. Those of us who remain are increasingly trying to cover the gaps. The communities notice these changes, often before anyone else does. They know when a familiar volunteer stops coming or when a regular delivery no longer arrives.
As fewer groups remain, the relationships between those still working become even more important. We depend on one another more, and the communities increasingly depend on us.
Care4Ukraine continues its work in villages throughout northeastern Ukraine. Much of our attention at this time of year is directed toward getting food and firewood into communities before winter conditions make deliveries more difficult. Our medication routes continue, and we’re also working to provide emergency electricity and communications equipment in isolated locations.
We also continue working with other organizations to identify where help is needed and how best to provide it. Sometimes our contribution is a delivery of supplies. Sometimes it’s helping another group find the materials or transportation it needs to complete its own work.
The attacks in Sumy over the weekend have left more families facing repairs they may struggle to afford. The coming winter will add to those difficulties, especially for older residents living alone.
We intend to keep making our rounds and working with the people and organizations who remain on the ground. There is still a great deal to do, and the need for cooperation and continued support is growing.
If you would like to help us continue this work, please consider a donation at Care4Ukraine.org. Your contributions help us keep supplies moving and support the local efforts that so many communities now depend upon.
Reporting: Suspilne Sumy, October 31; Suspilne Sumy, November 1; People in Peril, October 30.
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