Calgary man injured in Russian drone and missile attack in Ukraine
Global News
A Calgary man, who has been working to deliver humanitarian aid in Ukraine since 2022, is in hospital in Kyiv, after being injured in a Russian attack on Canada Day.
“Unrelenting.” That is how Calgarian Paul Hughes describes the recent Russian attacks on Ukraine.
“For the last three hours the city has been bombarded by Shaheds and missiles and cruise missiles,” said Hughes, speaking to Global News from the darkened Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Thursday evening.
“In the last two to three months it has really intensified,” added Hughes, with the sound of bombs exploding in the distance.
“June was almost 6,000 Shahed (drone) attacks, missiles — it’s getting very bad here. You can smell it in the air. You can see the smoke.”
Hughes has been in Ukraine since 2022 as a volunteer, doing humanitarian work with the Canadian charity H.U.G.S. (Helping Ukraine – Grassroots Support).
A few weeks after his arrival he was joined by his son MacKenzie, who is now 22 years old and has been working alongside Ukrainian troops, organizing relief efforts and humanitarian aid for people who have been displaced along the war’s front lines.
On Canada Day, during one of those massive Russian bombardments, MacKenzie was injured.
Luckily he’s still alive, but the extent of his injuries isn’t yet clear.
