Sumy Region's Border Villages See Population Plummet by Two-Thirds.

Sumy's Border Communities: A Region Depleted by War

According to Novyny.live: The ongoing war has devastated the border villages of Ukraine's Sumy region, triggering a massive exodus. In the Velyka Pysarivka community alone, the population has collapsed from 10,200 to just 3,000 residents, with over 7,000 people having fled. This mass departure has profoundly impacted the lives of those who remain. The Sumy region borders Russia and has endured shelling and incursions since the full-scale invasion began in 2022.

Crumbling Infrastructure and Daily Hardships

These villages now exist in a state of semi-ruin, with critical infrastructure non-functional for years. Key services have broken down, including:

• Fuel stations, which have been destroyed for over two years;
• Banks and ATMs, making basic financial transactions extremely difficult for remaining residents.

Despite the economic strain, pensions are still delivered on schedule via the postal service. The severity of the situation is underscored by the forced evacuation of families with children that began in the region in 2024.

Lyudmyla Biriukova, a local resident, confirmed: 'Our gas stations have been destroyed for more than two years, the banks don't work, and there are no ATMs.'

Her testimony highlights the dire living conditions in these border areas, where urgent solutions are needed to support the remaining population and begin recovery.

The crisis in Sumy's border villages starkly illustrates the war's brutal impact on civilian life. The dramatic depopulation and shattered infrastructure underscore an urgent need for stabilization measures. The forced evacuation of families indicates the situation continues to deteriorate, demanding immediate attention from the state and international community to restore any semblance of normalcy to these communities.