Mayo charity aids arrival of 90 Ukrainian children

Ninety Ukrainian children living near Chernobyl, including a large number of unaccompanied minors, arrived into Ireland today with the help a Mayo charity.

'Candle of Grace' flew the group of 113, which included some mothers and 59 children travelling without a parent, to Dublin Airport from Poland.

The small charity normally hosts groups of children from Belarus in the summer months, but has been fundraising and helping Ukrainian refugees since the Russian invasion began.

The flight arrived at Dublin Airport shortly before 11am, but the group was delayed for several hours at immigration as Tusla had not been notified about the arrival of the unaccompanied minors beforehand.

Lily Luzan, who is originally from Belarus and one of the founders of Candle of Grace, said half of the money raised since the charity's inception was used to bring the group over.

Speaking to RTÉ News from the bus taking the group to Co Mayo this evening, Ms Luzan said the children travelling without parents are "terrified" and they are all hungry and tired after a long journey.

She said the children and the mothers will spend the next couple of weeks in hotels near each other in Co Mayo.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said: "As is normal procedure to ensure the safety and wellbeing of any unaccompanied minors, regardless of nationality or point of departure, Department of Justice officials from the Border Management Unit immediately notify Tusla, the Child and Family Agency.

"Tusla, as is standard procedure, is assessing each child individually to ensure their safety and protection in Ireland.

"Recognising the vulnerability of people fleeing Ukraine, and in particular the vulnerability of unaccompanied minors, it is important that proper safeguarding protocols and procedures are in place and followed," added the statement.

Candle of Grace has sent a number of trucks with humanitarian aid to the Polish border and said it is in constant contact with schools, orphanages, disabled and elderly people that the charity has supported for many years.