'Unbelievable' race track convoy for Ukraine

Twelve emergency vehicles destined for Ukraine have taken part in an "unbelievable" drive around an iconic race track.

Oxfordshire-based voluntary organisation Driving Ukraine has provided more than 150 vehicles for frontline efforts since the war began.

On Thursday, one of the biggest trips the group has organised will depart the UK for Ukraine, with 28 volunteers driving the 12 vehicles as well as £250,000 worth of aid to the western city of Lviv.

To mark the occasion, on Wednesday the 12 vehicles completed four laps of the Silverstone race track in Northamptonshire.

Fynn Watt, who set up the group three years ago, has been coming to Silverstone since he was four and said the experience was "unbelievable".

"The whole lap at Silverstone, all of this is amazing and it's another example of all of the structures, all of the organisations that are behind Ukraine during the current invasion," he said.

The organisation is also celebrating another milestone, having raised £1m since its inception.

Operations manager Jacob Simpson said the amount of money raised - which covers the cost of transporting the vehicles as well as modifying them for frontline use - was "phenomenal".

"It's all really important to save lives, ultimately, and keep the guys in Ukraine happy and fighting for their independence," he said.

Mr Simpson has already been on several missions to Lviv.

"It's a weird one because immediately you think 'wow, this is a really normal city', it all feels quite relaxing," he said.

"And then maybe you'll hear an air raid siren, maybe you'll hear a Ukrainian guy talking about the war, you'll see people in military uniforms and all of these things that make you realise it's a country at war."

Mr Watt said the war was at the forefront of what they were doing.

"The undertones of all of this are still very real, which is that there's a horrible invasion going on in our continent and it's still ongoing," he said.

"All of these vehicles are going to save people's lives but it's unfortunate that they even have to… we're keeping that very firmly at the front of our minds.

"That's what we're doing it for. Those are the people that we're doing it for."

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