Russian-backed authorities have ordered the evacuation of an area on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River in the Kherson region, sending administrative staff and residents to the Russian city, CNN reports.

“The administration of Kakhovka of the Kherson region is moving to a safe place together with the residents of the city, which is currently in a 15-kilometer evacuation zone,” said Pavlo Filipchuk, the head of Kakhovka appointed by Russia.

Filipchuk called the regional military administration “target number one” for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

“That’s why, on behalf of the government of the Kherson region, we as an authority are moving to a safer territory, from where we will manage the district,” he said.

Filipchuk said that the evacuees in the Russian city of Tuapse will be provided with “warm, comfortable housing, three free meals, and the possibility of receiving material assistance in the amount of 100,000 rubles (about 1.5 thousand dollars).”

Filipchuk emphasized that those who do not evacuate are fully responsible for their lives, warning that the Kakhovsky district is subject to “bombing by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, military fortifications are being built there.”

“The living conditions of the civilian population are becoming less comfortable every day,” he said. “Services, pharmacies, grocery stores are closing. The work of communal enterprises and health care institutions has been transferred from basic services to the mode of emergency support.”

According to Filipchuk, more than 3,000 people have been evacuated so far.