Sisters Victoria and Diana Petrova are the lucky ones who escaped the bloodshed and reached Poland – but it was a difficult journey to safety.
They spent the first night on Vladimir PutinThe bombing slept roughly with his family in a parking lot in Kiev.
But last night, teenagers and their 46-year-old mother, Elena, took refuge in one of nine centers set up by Polish authorities for Ukrainians fleeing bloodshed. The center is in Korcova, which is close to the Polish-Ukrainian border.
“It was not safe to sleep in the basement,” said the visibly exhausted 19-year-old Victoria. The only alternative was the subway, but there was no space.
Polish border guards carry child to Poland-Ukraine border post after Russia launches large-scale military operation against Ukraine in Medica, Poland
The family, who are from Zaporizhia in southeastern Ukraine, spent two days in traffic jams trying to escape before crossing the border into Poland.
Ukrainian refugees crossing on foot were picked up by buses by border guards. Some were even transported by ordinary Poles who volunteered to help.
The family described how locals responded to a call to help their neighbors as they fled Russia’s military attack.
“Poles were waiting at the border with lots of food and warm clothes,” said 14-year-old Diana as she sat on a makeshift bed in the former refugee camp.
Mrs. Petrova smiled with gratitude, telling about the kindness shown. The family told the Daily Mail that a stranger had offered them an elevator to Lubin, a six-hour drive near the German border.
“We are safe now,” Ms. Petrova said. “Maybe the situation in Ukraine will not last that long and we will be able to return in a week or two.”
The large aircraft hangar-like building, now called Kiev Hall, has 600 makeshift camp beds. The operation is led by the Polish military, which takes over the logistics and distributes supplies to those in need.
Donations of food, clothing, medicine and even toys were distributed after massive efforts by locals in Poland.
Ukrainian refugees arrive by train from Kiev at Warszawa Wschodnia station in Warsaw, Poland
In the camp, food is left in cardboard boxes and shopping carts to be collected by refugees.
17-year-old Gaia Kosholko and her school friend Martina Farion, 18, spent yesterday handing out teddy bears to younger children.
Isabella Novak, 31, told the Mail how she assembled a group of 30 volunteers to create a soup kitchen for refugees.
“We will be here as long as necessary,” she said.
Miss Novak works in a computer shop run by 38-year-old Adam Holboy, who decided to close his business to help Ukrainians.
Last night the Mail saw how the locals withstood the freezing temperatures to welcome the newcomers.
They gathered in front of Kiev Hall when two buses, both full of people, stopped and offered free taxis to other parts of the country. Some had even come from afar to help.
Ukrainian family eats on their camp beds in an emergency center set up for refugees from the Ukrainian war in a warehouse in Korchova
Frank Cork, a 27-year-old wind turbine technician, said he drove from Prague overnight to be here to take the Ukrainians to safety.
“I felt it was better than just watching what was happening on TV,” Mr Cork said. “We Czechs were also under Soviet occupation, so I wanted to help.”
Polish volunteer drivers pass through the building, calling out their destination with the loudest voice. – Is there anyone in Berlin? A man shouted.
But last night, there were reports that African migrants in Ukraine were blocked from entering Poland. A man said he and his family had been removed from the border and said “no blacks”, The Independent reported.
Most of the newcomers spend only a few hours here before going to hotels, apartments or staying with relatives in other parts of Poland. The center has a high turnover, with people coming and going for almost an hour.
An NGO official who declined to be named said there had been an increase in weekends. “It’s really chaos here now,” he said. “We are trying to find beds for people or at least places to go.
“Most of those who cross the border seem to want to stay in Poland or go to Germany.”