More than twelve hours it took the Ecuadorian sisters Carolina and Diana Constante to reach the Ukrainian border with Poland from Kiev, from where they left on Thursday quickly and running after the first bombings carried out by Russian aviation.
“It was taking the most essential: some clothes, shoes, personal hygiene and some imperishable food. We got in the car and left,” Carolina said in a telephone conversation with Efe while they made a kilometric line to cross the border crossing with Poland.
After learning of the first military attacks in the early hours of Thursday, neither Carolina nor Diana thought twice and headed west, a few hours before the situation in the Ukrainian capital was complicated by the advance of the armed forces Russian to that city.
“I think it was the most appropriate decision, because what we see on social networks is that they have already started to attack Kiev and that they destroyed a bridge. It is more likely that they are no longer letting out. We left Kiev at 22:00 and they were already closing the entrance”Caroline recounted.
These two sisters are part of the 700 Ecuadorians who are in Ukraine, most of them university students who were studying in some of the cities most affected by the intense Russian military intervention.
Lasso affirmed that it is a priority of the Government ‘to bring Ecuadorians who are in Ukraine’
“Some managed to leave three days ago on the last flights that were available, which were very expensive, but they left. Now there are no flights, almost no trains and the roads are very congested,” said Carolina, who recently completed a master’s degree in international relations.
Scarce food and fuel
On that route there are also numerous people who have set out to try to reach Poland, including other Latin American citizens, such as several Colombians who have met along the way, as well as African immigrants from countries such as Nigeria.
However, with the passing of the hours, the provisions become scarce, since they have already verified that “Food at gas stations is running out, and gasoline too, because there are places where there is no more gasoline”warned Carolina, who also travels with her son.
“It is a bit worrying because the country is in a state of emergency and money is not exchanged. The banks are closed and they are not giving money. Only at ATMs you can withdraw a maximum of 3,000 hryvnias (100 dollars) per day“, lament.
Neither Carolina nor Diana have yet been able to process the magnitude of the moment they are experiencing, since they indicated that until the day before the Russian invasion began, life was normal in Kiev.
“I thought that nothing was going to happen. Everything was in speculation and news, but we never thought that the president of Russia was going to take these actions. It took us all by surprise,” admitted Carolina.
More than 8 hours of waiting
At the time of the last communication, these two Ecuadorian sisters had been waiting for more than eight hours in a long line of vehicles that want to go to Poland, a step that is being made in groups of ten cars.
His plan is to reach Warsaw, one of the cities where the Government of Ecuador has sent diplomats to serve Ecuadorians who want to leave Ukraine. and facilitate their transit through Europe.
In the case of these sisters, once they manage to enter Poland, their intention is to take a flight to Spain, where the Ecuadorian consular mission has guaranteed them a stay of 15 days.
Then they will assess whether they return to Ecuador or stay in Spain, since there they also have relatives who can host them while waiting to follow the events in Ukraine.
Not all Ecuadorians in Ukraine were able to move as quickly as they were and had to stay in their homes or in subway stations along with the rest of the local population seeking shelter from the bombings. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
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