The temporarily occupied city of Melitopol suffers a critical shortage of blood products as it is impossible to supply them from Zaporizhia, Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov has said.

"The thermal and climate delivery chain for blood products is rather complicated. And we are unable to support it due to the fact that the Rushists open all containers and refrigerators at the checkpoints. As a result, we deliver blood that cannot be used. There is a critical need for it today. I can tell you more: the temporarily occupied territories are out of some blood groups," he told a press briefing hosted by the Ukraine-Ukrinform Media Center on Wednesday.

At the same time, Fedorov said the efforts of volunteers still make it possible to supply city hospitals with essential medicines.

He stressed that around 50% of civilians stay in Melitopol today.

"According to estimations, 60,000 to 70,000 people stay there as of today. Around 45-50% of the city population stay in the territory of the temporarily occupied city," the mayor said.