These were the disturbing scenes in Lviv, Ukraine today, which are reminiscent LondonEvacuation during Blitz.
Complete chaos reigned in the crowded train station, less than 50 miles from Poland, when thousands of refugees fleeing Russian forces and air strikes invaded the city from all over Ukraine.
A wave of people climbed to reach the platforms, some even turning their suitcases over the rails.
There were heartbreaking scenes when families were forced to separate, with fathers waving goodbye to their wives and children and then returning to fight the Russians in Ukraine’s desperate defense.
Fights and skirmishes erupted in the densely packed ticket hall as seats in all offices leaving the military zone were soon sold out.
Even when the sirens sounded around the city, refugees kept coming.
Thousands of refugees at Lviv railway station in western Ukraine arrived Sunday from across the country, desperately trying to board trains to Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania.
Teenage girl comforted by family member as she cries at Lviv train station in western Ukraine after fleeing her home due to the ongoing Russian invasion
A stream of refugees flocked to Lviv station in western Ukraine on Sunday (pictured) in an attempt to escape Vladimir Putin’s forces
A group of young children wave to relatives as their train departs from Lviv station in western Ukraine on Sunday
A boy looks out the window and waves after boarding a train from Ukraine to Lviv station on Sunday
Clashes and clashes erupted at the densely packed Lviv station (pictured) as dozens of Ukrainians tried to pull trains out of the country.
Baby with a hat with a flashlight cries while waiting for a train at Lviv station, Western Ukraine, while families line up in the thousands to flee Ukraine
A baby fleeing Ukraine at Lviv railway station in western Ukraine on Sunday is comforted by a family member as tears fall on their faces
Father and son seem to share emotional farewell while boarding train at Lviv railway station in western Ukraine on Sunday
Father hugs and kisses son goodbye at Lviv railway station in western Ukraine on Sunday
A young boy smiles at the camera while holding a teddy bear while waiting for a train to take him and his family from Ukraine to Lviv station on Sunday
Two young girls pose for a photo while wrapped in warmth in front of Lviv railway station in western Ukraine, where thousands of refugees gathered on Sunday in an attempt to leave the country amid the Russian invasion
A woman (right) keeps a chihuahua in her jacket while another hugs her own dog wearing a jacket while waiting for a train at Lviv station
Even when air raids sounded in the city of Lviv on Sunday, refugees continued to arrive at the station
Hundreds of Ukrainian refugees wait on the tracks at Lviv station on Sunday after fleeing Russian forces
Grandpa Alex Mironov said goodbye through tears to his 17-year-old son Max and only grandson, six-month-old Daniel.
Max, who is studying English at school, said: “My brother Michael, Daniel’s father, was already working in Germany when the invasion took place.
“The family decided that I should go with the baby and his mother.
“She’s in there trying to get train tickets.” But the box office is crazy. Since I am under 18, I am allowed to go.
Alex said: “It is very sad to see my only grandson and sons outside Ukraine, but this is the right thing to do. I can’t wait for them to come back.
Bogdan Komarets, 47, from Krasnoarmeysk, had brought his 23-year-old daughter, Misha.
He wants her to seek refuge with relatives in Poland until the situation is resolved
Bogdan, a power plant worker, said: “I want to make sure she is safe. That’s all that matters to me. I need to know he’s out of danger.
“I hope this will not last much longer. It took us more than two hours to get her a ticket.
Milena Zashtitnikova, 21, arrived at the station with her four-year-old son Max and mother Ina, after her husband Andrei joined the troops fighting Russia.
But after boarding a full night train to Lviv from Zhytomyr, west of the capital Kiev, they were horrified to find that all international train services had been sold out.
Like thousands of others, they were left huddled next to each other outside the station in sub-zero temperatures.
Milena told MailOnline: “We hoped to be able to take a train from here to the Czech Republic, but there are no tickets – and we are mired in this chaos.
“I bought my little boy a toy train for the trip – but this is the only train he will take today and we have nowhere to stay tonight and no way to escape the war.
Thousands flocked to Lviv station (pictured) on Sunday in an attempt to flee Ukraine and Russian invading forces
Thousands were left to huddle in front of the station in sub-zero temperatures after many trains were sold off at Lviv station
A small child is sitting on a suitcase while waiting for a train from Ukraine at Lviv station on Sunday
A father holds his young child amid the chaos of Lviv station on Sunday
Ukrainian refugees gather on the stairs of Lviv railway station on Sunday while waiting for trains outside the country
A wave of people collided to reach the platforms of Lviv station on Sunday, with some even turning their suitcases over the rails
A young girl with a woolen hat and face mask sits on the ground at Lviv station while waiting to catch a train to Western Europe with her family
Streams of refugees continued to arrive at Lviv station on Sunday, only to find that many of the trains for the day had been sold out.
Refugees carrying pets and suitcases run through the rails of Lviv railway station in western Ukraine on Sunday
Ukrainians at Lviv station described the situation as a “nightmare” as they tried to get trains out of the country
Families face the need to spend the night in sub-zero temperatures, as there are not enough trains to carry them all.
“Max’s father went to fight the Russians and I promised him we would take our little boy to safety, but I have no idea how I would do it.
“We try to smile and keep my little boy happy because he is too young to understand what we are going through.
“Like thousands of other people here, we are experiencing a nightmare created by Vladimir Putin.”
Tanya Yokovchuk, 30, was also stranded outside the station with no hope of escaping yesterday as she struggled to comfort her crying two-year-old son, Karar.
She said: “We came here hoping to escape, but it has become a dead end – it is impossible to get train tickets.
“And now I don’t know what to do or where to go, and I’m desperately trying to find a place to sleep.
“No one here knows how this will end.”
The 76-year-old grandmother Marieta Sakova, who fled for fear of fighting in the eastern city of Dnipro, told MailOnline: “There are no train tickets, no petrol for cars – even if we had one and we would soon run out of money to buy food.
“We’re desperate to get out of here, but there’s just no way out.”
Another matriarch, 73-year-old Svetlana, fought back tears as she hugged her five-year-old grandson, David, after realizing they were blocked without tickets on any route outside the war zone.
She said: “I have no idea what we are going to do.
“I’m trying to meet my daughter and take us all to Poland, but there are no trains and like almost everyone else here, we have nowhere to stay tonight.”
All we want to do is get David out of the fight, but we’re trapped.
Anna Yavorska, 25, fled Kiev after being asked to take her niece Dasha, five, to safety.
She said: “The sound of bombs was terrifying and I quickly realized that this was not a place for a child.
“I told Dasha’s mother that I would take her to Poland away from the Russians, but once we got here, we were stuck.
“There are no trains to Europe with space and we have nowhere to stay tonight, so I have no choice but to keep fighting to get a ticket as soon as it’s available.
“No one would have thought that could happen even a week ago. How did this come about?