Stand behind Ukrainian independent journalism when it’s needed most. Help us reach 20,000 members.

Skip to content
Edit post

Ukrainians flee war by train, car, on foot

by Kostyantyn Chernichkin March 3, 2022 1:47 AM 2 min read
Ukrainians fleeing the war to Poland have a warm meal near the Lviv train station on Feb. 27, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
This audio is created with AI assistance

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), over 836,000 people have left Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion on Feb. 24.

With Russian troops shelling Ukrainian cities, hitting schools, kindergartens and nurseries, hundreds of thousands of people are fleeing to Ukraine's westerns frontiers.

Despite Ukrainian western neighbors – Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Moldova – welcoming all those in need, the country's border checkpoints have failed to accustom unprecedented numbers.

Ukrainian families spend hours, sometimes days, in traffic at the border, while those seeking to leave by train overcrowd Ukrainian railway stations.

“At this rate, the situation is set to become Europe’s largest refugee crisis this century,” UNHCR spokesperson Shabia Mantoo said on March 1.

The Kyiv Independent publishes a series of photos from the train station in the western Ukrainian city Lviv, which became the main destination for those seeking evacuation within Ukraine, and the Rava Ruska border crossing point with Poland.

Ukrainians fleeing the war to Poland cram the Lviv train station on Feb. 28, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Ukrainians board a train to Poland at the Lviv train station on Feb. 28, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Lviv has become the main destination for Ukrainians who seek to evacuate from the war-hit eastern cities but stay in Ukraine. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
A family waits for their train at the Lviv train station on Feb. 27, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Ukrainians fleeing the war eat the meals offered by volunteers near the Lviv train station on Feb. 27, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
A volunteer feeds refugees as they wait for to cross the border with Poland at the checkpoint in Rava Ruska, Ukraine on Feb. 26, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Ukrainian refugees walk towards the Rava Ruska border checkpoint to cross into Poland on Feb. 26, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
People crossing the border by car wait in a 30-kilometer-long line near the border checkpoint near the Polish border at Rava Ruska, Ukraine on Feb. 26, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)

Independent journalism needs a community —
not a paywall.

We’re working hard to show the world the truth of Russia’s brutal war — and we’re keeping it free for everyone, because reliable information should be available to all.

Our goal: reach 20,000 members to prove independent journalism can survive without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise. Will you help us do it?

Can we reach 20,000 members?

News Feed

2:36 PM  (Updated: )

Zelensky meets Pope Leo XIV at Vatican.

Zelensky presented the pope with a special icon, "Mother of God with Child," painted on a fragment of a box that held heavy artillery in the war-torn town of Izium.
7:03 PM

Trump growing impatient with Russia, Finnish president says.

"If you put it together, you could say that Zelensky is patient and President Trump is getting impatient, but in the right direction, which is towards Russia," Finnish President Alexander Stubb said after holding separate talks with both Trump and Zelensky this weekend.
6:20 PM  (Updated: )

Trump to talk to Putin on May 19 in push to end 'bloodbath.'

"Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war — a war that should have never happened — will end. God bless us all!!!" U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan
* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.