Ukraine is taking measures to build its inaugural fully underground school in the city of Kharkiv in response to the ongoing threat of Russian bomb and missile attacks, according to an announcement by the city’s mayor.
Kharkiv, situated less than 35 kilometers (20 miles) from the Russian border, has been subjected to frequent aerial assaults, with Russian attacks occurring so swiftly that residents often have insufficient time to seek refuge in underground shelters.
Mayor Ihor Terekhov revealed plans to construct Ukraine’s first underground school, designed to meet contemporary protective structure standards.
He expressed the school’s purpose as providing a safe environment for thousands of Kharkiv’s children to receive in-person education even during missile threats.
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While the mayor did not specify the school’s opening date, he affirmed that education funding in Kharkiv would not be reduced during the 2023-24 period, despite budgetary constraints.
During the course of the conflict, Ukrainian schools in frontline areas have shifted to online learning. In preparation for the new school year commencing on September 1, Kharkiv established approximately 60 separate classrooms within its metro stations, accommodating over 1,000 children in a secure study environment.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Education reports that 363 educational institutions have been destroyed, and nearly 3,800 have been damaged throughout the country since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, had a pre-war population exceeding 1.4 million. Oleh Synyehubov, the governor of the Kharkiv region, disclosed that within a 24-hour period up to Monday, one civilian lost their life, and several residences were damaged as a result of Russia’s shelling and rocket attacks.
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