Bottles of alcohol, rotten fruit and mold: what was found in the children's "Artek" in Pushcha-Vodytsia
In the shelters, children had to sleep on pallets with dirty bedding
After parents’ complaints on social media, a monitoring group from the Office of the Ombudsman inspected the children’s camp “Artek” in Pushcha-Vodytsia. The facility recorded dirt, broken furniture, mold, spoiled food, ants in living and production premises, as well as inadequate shelter conditions.
On the results of the visit August 5, 2026 reported the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets.
The inspection was carried out after outraged reports from parents on social networks. Before that, representatives of the Ombudsman visited the camp “Artek Zakarpattia”, where they also found unsanitary conditions, rotten food, overcrowded rooms and an unfit shelter.
Explaining the reason for the new monitoring visit, Dmytro Lubinets noted that the parents’ complaints required immediate intervention.
“First we visited the children’s camp “Artek” in Zakarpattia. Now — in Pushcha-Vodytsia. I saw parents’ outrage on social networks and understood that intervention was needed here”.
The monitoring group worked on the camp’s territory from 09:00 on August 4. During the inspection, specialists found numerous violations in the living rooms, the food unit and in the premises intended to be used as shelters during air raid alerts.
Describing what was seen at the children’s facility, Dmytro Lubinets reported dirt, mold, spoiled food and alcohol in staff utility rooms.
“In the rooms — dirt, broken furniture, mold and fungus. In the staff utility rooms — bottles of alcohol. In the food unit — rotten fruit. Daily test samples are not available for all dishes. Ants are everywhere — from the living rooms to the food workshops. Shelters are not properly equipped: sleeping places are arranged on pallets, bedding is dirty, and there is insufficient drinking water”.
Separately, the monitoring group drew attention to the layout of the camp grounds. Despite the insufficient supply of drinking water in the shelters, the facility installed coffee machines that could even be used by younger children.
The Ombudsman was particularly alarmed by parents’ reports about the condition of children after returning from recreational facilities. Under a post about violations at “Artek” one mother said she picked up her child from the camp very emaciated. After that, other parents began to share similar stories.
Commenting on the numerous similar complaints, Dmytro Lubinets cast doubt that the violations found were isolated incidents and demanded a response from the relevant ministry.
“But what affected me most was something else. Under the post about “Artek” one of the moms wrote that she took her child from the camp, and the child returned very thin. Under that comment, messages from other parents began to appear — already about other children’s camps. And again — similar stories. So is this really a matter of isolated cases? Or are we already dealing with a systemic problem in organizing recreation and recuperation for our children? Therefore I demand a response from the Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity of Ukraine”.
Following the monitoring, the Ombudsman sent official letters to the relevant state bodies. He expects a concrete assessment of whether the detected conditions can correspond to the claimed “higher” category of the children’s institution.
Emphasizing the state’s responsibility for the safety and health of children, Dmytro Lubinets stated that real consequences must follow negligence in recreational facilities.
“Because a children’s camp is not just a place where parents send a child for the holidays. It is a place where the state must guarantee the child safety, proper conditions and respect for their rights. And if instead we see dirt, mold, inadequate shelters and other violations — there must be change and accountability. Children should not have to pay for someone else’s negligence with their health and safety”.
Earlier we wrote:
- Another 144 children from Mykolaiv departed for recuperation to the Carpathians
- 30 children from Mykolaiv region headed to Lviv region for a holiday
- The circus studio from Korabelnyi — in Bulgaria: young performers train at an international camp
- Carpathians instead of alarms: 100 children of defenders from Mykolaiv region were sent on a holiday
- Children of war head for quiet: 100 children of defenders from Mykolaiv region set off for Ivano-Frankivsk region
