Repurposed local vehicles sent to frontline of war in Ukraine

Friday 25 March 2022

Vehicles from Guernsey are being repurposed and delivered to the frontline of the war in Ukraine. Two vehicles have already been sent and two more will be shipped next week.

In just one week, a Land Rover Freelander was converted into a first response car and a Fiat Ducato was fully stocked and equipped as a frontline ambulance.

Richard Myers, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, said he was amazed how quickly his idea came to fruition.

“My wife, Gosia, and I are both ex-forces and we were medically trained in our roles, so I had an understanding of what the medical needs would be on the frontline in Ukraine,” said Mr Myers.

“I now run Guernsey Transport Solutions, so I have access to vehicles, and Gosia and I felt strongly that we needed to do something to help.”

Pictured: The first of four vehicles from Guernsey which have been repurposed to help victims of war in Ukraine. 

Mr Myers contacted the Ukrainian Embassy in London with his idea.

“I wanted to check with the appropriate channels whether the vehicles would be helpful to the war efforts and the response was overwhelmingly positive that they would be useful,” he said.

“We have worked with the Ukrainian Embassy at every stage and they provided details of what medical supplies were most needed on the frontline.

“I still can’t quite believe that from that initial conversation it only took 10 days and we are now in Poland waiting for the vehicles to be collected.”

Pictured: One of the vehicles at a petrol station in Poland. 

Mr and Mrs Myers’ original intention had been to deliver the vehicles directly to the frontline.

“Unfortunately, the area we were meant to take them to has come under heavy shelling and it is too dangerous for us to continue the journey, but paramedics are coming to collect both vehicles and take them back.

“It’s bittersweet because I’m so proud of the community effort that has seen these vehicles make it this far, but I am also thinking about the fact that there will be seriously injured or even dying people being loaded into them.”

Two more repurposed vehicles will be taken from Guernsey to Poland next week.

Pictured: The vehicles are fully stocked with medical supplies. 

“We have been so fortunate that there are two more vehicles ready to go, but we were struggling to find drivers for them,” said Mr Myers.

“The response from the community has been unbelievable. I connected with a woman called Olga on social media and she found two volunteers, Tom Jenkins and Darren Konkin, to bring the second pair of vehicles across.

“The response from the public and business has been overwhelming and I think it shows how quickly a project can come together with the help of social media. I have only known these people for 10 days and I feel like I have known them my whole life.

“I would like to express my appreciation to everyone who has helped us with seeing this idea become a reality.”

Pictured: One of the vehicles has been fully equipped as a frontline ambulance. 

Olga Turkoglu, a Ukrainian living in Guernsey, saw My Myers' appeal on social media.

“I reached out to Richard because I thought his idea was really great and I wanted to know if I could do anything to help,” she said.

“The vehicles are not official ambulances, but they are desperately needed. I recently saw that Russian solders had stolen first response vehicles in Ukraine, so these vehicles couldn’t be more important to help Ukraine.”

Stickers of the Ukrainian flag and a red cross have been added to the vehicles. 

Pictured: Mr and Mrs Myers travelled with the vehicles and drove them to Poland. 

Mr Myers said: “The Ukrainian embassy told us we should put the red cross on the vehicles and to make sure it was very visible because it is an internationally recognised symbol of humanitarian aid.

“Hopefully, the vehicles will travel safely the rest of the way to the frontline and can help the people of Ukraine.”

Funds for the vehicles and equipment were raised from donations to an online appeal. Donations have also been received from multiple local companies - for example, the Underground Hospital paid for fuel for the vehicles for the journey to Ukraine.

Pictured: Mr Myers is fundraising for more vehicles. 

My Myers hopes to continue the project and send other repurposed vehicles to Ukraine.

“We are still fundraising and I will kit out as many vehicles as possible.

"My wife and I are personally covering the fee charged by Just Giving, so anyone who donates will know that 100% of their donation is being used to stock these vehicles and get them sent to the frontline."

You can donate to the fundraising appeal by clicking HERE.