- Dette innlegget er også tilgjengelig på norsk.
It began as an idea exchanged between two verses of a football chant on a crowded train. Recently, Brann supporters, Norwegian entrepreneurs, and volunteers from Fritt Ukraina stood together on the outskirts of Lviv in front of two green mobile field hospitals. Developed in Bergen and funded by ordinary people. One through Brann for Ukraina, the other by an anonymous Norwegian donor. Both were requested directly by the Ukrainian Armed Forces and delivered as part of Fritt Ukraina’s 100th delivery.
A quiet morning in Lviv
The smell of burnt wood hangs in the cold air while the November light slips between the buildings, as if the city is slowly exhaling after a long night. Meanwhile, on a small parking lot outside the centre, a group of Brann supporters stands alongside volunteers from Fritt Ukraina and Bergen-based innovators. Together, they are witnessing something that would have been unthinkable a year ago.
In front of them are two matte green steel containers. Unmarked to avoid drawing Russian precision fire. One funded through Brann for Ukraina, the other donated by a Norwegian contributor who wished to remain anonymous.
This marks Fritt Ukraina’s 100th delivery. A milestone and a testament to what civilian solidarity can achieve.
– Fritt Ukraina is made up of ordinary people doing extraordinary things, says Natalia Golis, Secretary General of Fritt Ukraina.
– Courage is choosing to shape the future we believe in.
When doors open
The metal creaks as the doors slide apart. Cold air meets the smell of fresh paint and untouched cables.
Once inside, surgical lights reflect off yellow walls, while shockproof cabinets are filled with medical instruments. Ventilation, filtration, and power systems hum quietly in the background. Everything is ready.
This is a FLEXIPOD Clinic. A mobile military field hospital developed in Bergen, refined through NATO exercises, and now delivered to the Ukrainian military for the first time.
Drone warfare and precision strikes have made tented hospitals dangerously exposed. Consequently, medical personnel are therefore forced to work hidden. Underground, in reinforced shelters, or in improvised rooms.
– No building protects you from incoming fire, says Mykhailo, a combat medic in the 3rd Assault Brigade.
– The Russians bomb anything they can see.
Reaching a conventional hospital can take hours, sometimes an entire day. Many never make it. As a result, bringing treatment closer to the wounded has become essential.
– These units bring treatment to the wounded — not the other way around, Mykhailo says.
Each minute matters. Sometimes each second.
From an away-match to Ukraine
However, the story of this delivery did not begin in Lviv. Instead, it began on an overcrowded train filled with Brann supporters singing at the top of their lungs.
– On a completely overloaded train, with football chants echoing down the carriage, Peter Frølich and I came up with the idea to unite two things we care deeply about: Brann’s fight on the footballfield and Ukraine’s fight on the battlefield, says Paal Zandstra Krokeide.
Soon after, supporters engagement turned into a full-scale grassroots effort for Ukraine. Sunflower pins were sold. Local companies and private citizens donated what they could.
Meanwhile, a Norwegian donor, together with Fritt Ukraina, matched the fundraising — dollar for dollar.
– It hit us straight in the heart, says supporter Odd Soltvedt.
– We’re used to backing our team when the storm hits. Now we support people fighting for their lives
Natalia adds:
– The partnership with Brann for Ukraina shows how deeply this war touches all of us. A football club from Bergen helping save a soldier’s life — giving a child in Ukraine their parent back — is extraordinary.
Norwegian technology built for a new kind of war
Behind the FLEXIPOD Clinics is Podtown, a Bergen-based company that once built festival cabins. In collaboration with Ferno Norden, they have engineered a medical unit built for modern and high-intensity warfare.
Each unit includes ballistic protection, fragmentation shielding, camouflage, and a self-powered system ready within minutes. They can be buried, withstand attacks, and operate independently for days.
– They may look like ordinary containers, but inside they’re complete medical systems, says Podtown founder Eirik Kalve.
Natalia adds:
– Peter and I have never been so proud of Bergen.
Straight from handover to the front
Soon after the handover, the Ukrainian combat medics respond immediately. And moments later, the doors close and the engines start. Before anyone can react, the field hospitals are already on their way to the front.
– They simply said: “Close the doors and send it now.” and told us: “If this saves even one life, it’s already worth the cost“, Kalve says
Odd watches the container disappear.
– I was nearly in tears. It was more solid and more advanced than I had imagined. It showed how urgent the need is.
Paal nods beside him.
– I was stunned. As a father of three boys, knowing this might save another parent… that made everything worth it.
Only the beginning
Eventually, the convoy disappears into the distance, leaving only exhaust in the cold morning air.
Two green steel rooms from Bergen — two rooms of hope — are now heading into some of the most dangerous areas of the war.
– When you donate the equivalent of about ten dollars, every single dollar goes straight to the frontline, Soltvedt says. No bureaucracy. No paid middlemen. Only volunteers working relentlessly.
Natalia closes with:
– This collaboration shows what can happen when passionate people channel that energy into something bigger than themselves. An this is only the beginning.