'Like entering a ghost town' - local men describe 1,600-mile Ukraine journey
The men delivered tonnes of aid from across Co Derry and Mid Ulster.
A group of lorry drivers from Mid Ulster who delivered aid to a refugee camp along the border between Poland and Ukraine have said it was a 'humbling experience'.
Benny McGeehan from Desertmartin made the gruelling 1,600-mile journey last week with fellow drivers Mark McCann from Omagh and Noel Rafferty from Cookstown, County Tyrone.
They picked up aid from across the Mid Ulster area, with St Pius X College, Magherafelt, Holy Trinity College, Cookstown, Workspace NI, Draperstown and Halo, Cookstown all pitching in.
After filling two lorry loads of donations, Noel described the moment they arrived in the border area as like 'driving into a ghost town'.
“We headed out on the Saturday morning and we landed on the Tuesday morning at the Ukrainian border,” he told the County Derry Post.
“The people were very grateful to get it, they couldn't thank us enough. They took everything we brought down and we brought the guts of 45 tonnes of aid.
“The man Pavlo that took it off us was very grateful; he lifted us in the car and took us down. He actually owns a washing powder warehouse.
“He has one in Ukraine and one in Poland; right on the border, and he can't do business any more because of the war – he can't get stuff in and out.
Having met with Pavlo and delivered the aid, the local man took Noel, Benny and Mark down to see the refugee camp, an experience that had a profound effect on them.
“We went down to see the refugee camp and it was a sight for sore eyes. A very sad experience; you don't realise how bad it is until you are actually there,” said Noel.
“There were just people upon people coming off buses, run-down and unhappy. I didn't spend that long in it, I wasn't too comfortable.
“The man that we gave the donations to was more than grateful to get them. We thought we were taking too much, that they wouldn't want all this, but they couldn't get enough.”
Although on the Polish side, the spectre of war raging across the border was impossible to avoid.
“When we were standing out the back, you could hear the gunfire going off ,” said Noel.
“You couldn't see much because it was well-cordoned off, but we'd rather not have seen. We weren't there an hour and the bomb sirens started going off; it scared the life out of us.
“We were standing out the back and didn't know whether to run or stand. The only reason we didn't run is because there was a wee boy playing outside in the garden.
“He didn't seem too fazed so we thought if he's not fazed, it can't be too bad. It was definitely an eye-opener and it's not a place I'd be keen to go back to.”
The men were keen to thank those who provided the aid from around Mid Ulster, with their donations joining a sea of international goodwill towards the Ukrainian people.
“Every nationality around the world is in that place,” said Noel.
“When we were filling diesel, we ran into eight vans from Austria with Austrian and Ukrainian flags in the back of them carrying aid.
With the Russian invasion now entering its 34th day, Noel says the trip has brought home the reality of just how close this war is.
“I don't really think it's hit us yet to be honest. It's all happened so quickly, trying to find places and driving through new countries,” he said.
“This is only a three-day drive from your doorstep; it's not far away. I don't think people realise actually how close it is.
“It was a very humbling experience. We were saying going up the road that this is something you'll never forget.
“I'd like to think if the shoe was on the other foot, they would help us,” he added.