Eddie O'Keeffe from Ballynoe, Conna, Co Cork, set off with 15t of humanitarian aid for the Ukraine border last week, with co-pilot John Hennessey from Ballymacoda, Co Cork.

The two Cork men got the ferry from Rosslare to Dunkirk and then made their way through France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and finally Poland.

Travelling 4,500km in total, O'Keeffe said that the lorry was "packed to the roof" with hospital mattresses, nappies, bottles of water, food, pet food and some 2,500 Cúl Camp backpacks.

"Bottles of water were most important, as they [Ukrainians] were doing a lot of walking.

Convoy

"There was a convoy of us, four other lorries travelled over with us," O'Keeffe said.

The lorries were all filled by volunteers and diesel money was donated.

"Leahy's Open Farm Foods helped us in a big way with the diesel money and there were numerous donations from friends and neighbours too," he said.

On the way back, there were some complications getting on to the ferry in Dunkirk, so O'Keeffe and Hennessey had to travel another 600km to Cherbourg port.

"We even drove through parts of France where there were driving bans in place.

"The boat we got from Cherbourg was smaller, but by god was it packed," he said.

O'Keeffe said that there was three loads of refugees with Cronin's Coaches heading for Rosslare.

Without Hennessey as co-pilot, O'Keeffe said he never would have managed on his own, as it was a lot of driving and a "fair long trek".