Refugees walk after fleeing the war from neighbouring Ukraine at the border crossing in Medyka, southeastern Poland, Friday, April 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
A flight carrying nearly 300 Ukrainian refugees will land at Winnipeg’s James Richardson International Airport later this month.
The province says it has been notified that Manitoba is the destination for one of three federally arranged chartered flights transporting Ukrainian refugees to Canada from Warsaw, Poland.
“We have been receiving countless communications from those uprooted by the war currently being waged by Russia in Ukraine and anxious to find safety,” said Joanne Lewandosky, president, Ukrainian Canadian Congress-Manitoba Provincial Council.
“Many have fled with only the clothes they were wearing and cannot access the financial resources to enable them to travel to Canada. The charter flight being organized will enable up to 300 displaced persons to come to Manitoba, where the Ukrainian community in partnership with governments are providing much-needed supplies and services to help these newcomers settle and adjust. We look forward to their arrival and are prepared to welcome them with all our hearts.”
The exact date of the flight’s arrival isn’t yet known, but the province has been told to prepare for the third week of May.
Refugees will be welcomed and transported to Manitoba’s Ukrainian Refugee Reception Centre upon landing, where the coordination of arrival and settlement processes will continue.
Further information on Manitoba’s response efforts to the crisis in Ukraine can be found at manitoba4ukraine.ca.
