On 3 August, 48 children and 5 accompanying people from the Irkutsk region that had been hit by flooding arrived at the Dzerzhinsky sanatorium. The children will spend 21 days in Voronezh. They will enjoy many cultural and educational events and health resort treatment.
The Head of the Department of Education, Science, and Youth Policy of the Voronezh Region, Oleg Mosolov, the Rector of VSU, Dmitry Endovitsky, and the Chairmen of the Voronezh Regional Duma, Vladimir Netyosov, met the young guests of the Voronezh region. The officials welcomed the children and gave them presents.
The proposal to organise the rest and recreation for children from the Irkutsk region was made by the administration of Voronezh State University with the support of the Department of Education, Science, and Youth Policy of the Voronezh Region.
“The idea to invite children to Voronezh started at the university. We discussed this initiative with our colleagues at the meeting of the University Academic Council and decided that we had to do it. Voronezh is a hospitable and friendly city and we are ready to provide all the possible support to the children”, said the Rector of VSU, Dmitry Endovitsky.
“The whole country tried to help the victims of the natural disaster and when our leading Voronezh university suggested the idea, the government totally approved of it”, said the Head of the Department of Education, Science, and Youth Policy of the Voronezh Region, Oleg Mosolov. “We had a place that was ready for the children, i.e. Dzerzhinsky sanatorium which is one of the best in the Voronezh region. The staff of the sanatorium are experienced in dealing with children. The attention which the children will receive is the most important thing”.
The Chief Doctor of Dzerzhinsky sanatorium, Alexei Chernov, commented on the situation:
“Today, we have children from Irkutsk at our sanatorium. We provide them with comfortable accommodation and treatment procedures. Every day the children visit our aqua centre and drink oxygen cocktails. The territory of sanatorium is huge, which means we can organise different quests and sport events. The focus is on providing a healthy lifestyle. We want our children to have rest and gain strength so that on 1 September they will be cheerful when they go back to school”, said Alexey Chernov. “First of all they will get a consultation with a paediatrician who will decide what treatment each of them needs.
Among the guests of the sanatorium there are 19 people from the Nizhneudinsky district and 29 people from Tulun that was most severely affected by flooding.
“The journey here was OK. I’m looking forward to meeting new people and new experiences. We looked through the programme that had been prepared especially for us and I was eager to go. It is my first time in Voronezh. Even though it is very far from home, my parents supported my decision and let me go”, said Tatiana Golovan from Tulun.
“I am from Nizhneudinsk. I finished the 4th form. I hope I will get lots of positive emotions here and have a perfect rest. My elder brother has been in Voronezh once before and he liked it here”, said Agata Kozlova.
The programme prepared by the organisers includes trips to the Voronezh museums, the Voronezh aquarium, and a sightseeing tour around Voronezh. The cultural programme was formed thanks to the contributions from the administration of VSU museums, Kramskoy Art Museum, the nature reserve “Kostyonky”, the nature reserve “Divnogorie”, Voronezh aquarium, and Voronezh Youth Theatre which will give an off-site performance “Fairy Tales of Lukomorie”.
Life at the sanatorium will also be a lot of fun. The staff have already prepared entertainment teams, quests, and sport events.
In June 2019, several rivers in five districts of the Irkutsk region burst their banks. Between 25 June and 31 July, over 6,700 houses in 83 settlements were damaged as a result of the flooding. It affected over 32,700 people, including 4,000 children. According to the Irkutsk authorities, the estimated damage is 31.2 million roubles.
