UKRAINIAN REFUGEE EVACUATION PROJECT

St George Ukrainian humanitarian aid effort encompasses a multi approach effort. We contracted with Studebaker Group, a global crisis managment firm, whose CEO is a former NATO Supreme Commander.  Soliciting donations to evacuate civilians and noncombatants out of harms way; St George received a $50,000 donation which was used to evacuate civilians from the Ukraine to safety. 

Results: Over six weeks, more than 800 people were evacuated from locations throughout conflict-affected Ukraine to safe areas. The evacuation support provided included specific pick-up of those unable to gather at an evacuation staging area, secure transportation from staging areas to safe havens, armed escort services, coordination of safe accommodation, provision of warm food, sourcing of medication and arrangement of permits to allow safe passage through militia roadblocks. Several evacuation missions also required specific medical support.

Studebaker Group was approached by an active-duty U.S. military member requesting support evacuating his in-laws in Ukraine. The evacuation, like many others, posed unique challenges. The elderly lady was severely sick, with an illness that required frequent personal bio-breaks and constant medical care. The elderly family also had a private vehicle, which they preferably wanted to take with them during the evacuation. The couple resided in Dnipro, central-south Ukraine. The initial request was to evacuate them to Moldova, where an air ambulance would be ready to take them into western Europe. The evacuation team sourced an ambulance to transport the lady with the gentleman transported in his vehicle.

Based on the prevailing security situation, the evacuation destination changed to Poland. On the day of the evacuation, Russian forces launched air attacks at the Dnipro airport, less than 15 miles from their residence. On the first day of the evacuation, the couple was securely transported to Rivne, in central Ukraine. Advance arrangements included permits to facilitate easy pass-through of militia roadblocks, secure accommodation in Rivne, sufficient gas en route, and food-specific for their dietary and medical needs. The couple was transported to the Ukraine-Poland border crossing near Lublin, Poland, on the second day. Upon arrival in Poland, the lady was immediately transferred into an ambulance, stabilized and transported to a safe hotel. At the family's request, an air ambulance scheduled to depart the next day from Lublin to Zurich was cancelled. The couple, joined by their family, gradually made their way via road to Zurich, where long-term medical treatment was pre-arranged. On March 2, 2022, a concerned young lady in Australia contacted Studebaker Group through an intermediary. She requested assistance evacuating her 91-year-old grandmother out of Kyiv, Ukraine. The grandmother was severely ill and required support to move around. When the bombings started in Kyiv, others who usually supported her in the apartment complex left abruptly, leaving her without any support network. Studebaker Group successfully collected her in Kyiv using highly-skilled professional resources on the ground. The team moved her via road to Khmelnytskyi in southwestern Ukraine for an overnight stop. At this point, she received medical treatment while the team sourced medication and food specific to her diet. The frail grandmother was evacuated into Poland a day later using the Korczowa border crossing. A family friend collected her on the other side, and a fortnight later, her family welcomed her to Sydney, Australia. Operation Babushka was executed with great success.

As part of a larger humanitarian support mission, Studebaker Group, around March 10, 2022, started to support families in Ukraine with Down Syndrome children. Throughout the support mission, Studebaker Group also coordinated with several professional groups that specialize in providing support to Down Syndrome families in Ukraine, Poland and Europe. In Kyiv, families were collected at their residences and funnelled to a central evacuation staging area. From here, families were evacuated to Lviv in western Ukraine using secure bus transportation, escorted by highly-skilled security professionals. The evacuation team coordinated safe accommodation and warm food upon arrival in Lviv. The following day, families were transported across the border into Poland and safely relocated to Krakow. Efforts to support these transplanted families continue. 

Within 24 hours after the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Studebaker Group started receiving requests from corporate clients, non-government organizations, non-profit groups and private families to provide safe, secure evacuation services. Over six weeks, more than 800 people were evacuated from locations throughout conflict-affected Ukraine to safe areas in western Ukraine. Even though some evacuees ended up in Hungary, Moldova, Romania and Slovakia, the majority of those evacuated by Studebaker Group ended up in Poland, primarily Krakow. Studebaker Group relied on highly-skilled security professionals, operating in teams coordinated by a central evacuation control command. All evacuation missions worked in an intelligence-driven environment where prevailing threat conditions on the ground drove decision-making on the type and time of evacuations.

Safe border crossings included transportation to Krakow, Poland. The evacuation support provided included specific pick-up of those unable to gather at an evacuation staging area, secure transportation from staging areas to safe havens, armed escort services, coordination of safe accommodation, provision of warm food, sourcing of medication and arrangement of permits to allow safe passage through militia roadblocks. Several evacuation missions also required specific medical support. Regular intelligence briefings providing ongoing situational awareness were delivered to corporate clients and professional groups.