Two children in Kherson region seriously injured in explosion of unknown object

Two minors, aged 10 and 13, sustained serious injuries in the village of Zahorianivka, Kherson region, following an explosion of an unidentified object at a playground.

The head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration Oleksandr Prokudin reported that on Telegram.

"In Zahoryanivka, two children were injured due to the explosion of an unknown object.

A 13-year-old child has shrapnel injuries to his limbs. The younger one, a 10-year-old, was wounded in the abdomen.

The tragedy happened on the playground where the boys were playing," the head of the region said.

Prokudin reported that the children were transported to the hospital.

"Their condition is quite serious. Doctors are providing all the necessary assistance. The older boy is being operated on," the head of the Regional Military Administration emphasized.

The head of the region once again called on parents to be vigilant.

"Watch where your children are playing. Do not touch unknown objects," summed up Prokudin.

It should be noted that on May 14, five civilians died in the Kherson region due to explosives left by the Russian invaders.

On June 1, Russian troops shelled Kherson and the region, as a result of which 15 people received injuries of varying degrees of severity.

For reference:

Around 5,000 specialists will be required to complitely demine Ukraine's territory, and the process is predicted to take up to 30 years to eliminate all explosive elements.

The HALO Trust, a leading global demining organization, has estimated that the land contaminated by mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) in Ukraine is roughly equivalent to the size of the United Kingdom.

Reports from the New York Times indicate that Russian troops, who once occupied many areas of southern Ukraine, left behind a number of mines and booby traps. Ukrainian sappers continue to survey and clear land mines to restore normalcy to the region, particularly in the Kherson region.

Open-source data collected by HALO has indicated that nearly 200 civilians have been killed in mining accidents since the war started. However, this is likely to be a significant underestimate. Cluster munitions, which the Russian forces have used to shell liberated territories, can potentially spread unexploded bomblets over a large area.

Read also – Austria allocates €2 mln for humanitarian demining in Ukraine

Ukrainian NGO Come Back Alive leads life-saving fundraiser to demine Ukraine