Ukrainian national Tetiana Torbina (left), with daughter Mariia Torbina and son-in-law Alex Wills. Photo / Supplied
Ukrainian national Tetiana Torbina (left), with daughter Mariia Torbina and son-in-law Alex Wills. Photo / Supplied
Tetiana Torbina has managed to board the train, fleeing from Ukraine's war horrors, with a single backpack.
But her family in Northland has no idea where will the train stop or "if it reaches a destination without getting bombed".
And when she gets to the border, they do not knowhow long she will have to stay there, whether it is days or weeks.
Torbina, 64, is devastated as she says goodbye to her only home in the world, which she bought 30 years ago, using all her life savings at the time, in Kryvyi Rih.
"It is pretty much a given the city will soon be destroyed, along with the apartment," says son-in-law and Northlander Alex Wills who is desperately waiting on Immigration NZ to fast track Torbina's visa application.
Kryvyi Rih is the largest city in central Ukraine and Wills said the officials had warned the civilians that it would be the next target of Russian missiles and bombs.
Mariia Torbina and mum Tetiana Torbina's with the celebratory pavlova in Ukraine. This was Alex Wills' first attempt at making pavlova ever. Photo / Supplied
"They are already at the stage where multiple firings and sirens are going off at night. People are sitting in the subways and civilians are trying to get out as and when they can."
Torbina boarded the train yesterday, while many others were left behind at the platform, that was supposed to be headed towards Chop (the city is located in western Ukraine, near the borders of Slovakia and Hungary).
"You hope the train comes and you do not know where it's going, can only be presumed to the border.
"We are hoping she gets an option to get to Slovakia as we have some contact there, but we wouldn't know until the train has reached a destination without getting bombed.
"The other concern is we don't know at what point her phone stops working."
The Northland family worried Torbina's 30-hour journey to Chop was going to be very exhausting as there was not enough room on the train for everyone to get a seat.
The humanitarian crisis in Ukraine is deepening as Russian forces intensify their attacks, while food, water, heat, and medicine grow increasingly scarce.
Some 1.7m Ukrainians are thought to have fled the fighting and the total could reach 5m, the EU reported.
Tom Mutch, a New Zealand photographer in Ukraine, photographed destruction from recent skirmishes with Russian-backed troops along the Ukrainian border. Photo / Tom Mutch
The family wished to bring Torbina to New Zealand, but the Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Kyiv is currently closed with no timeframe on when it will reopen. INZ encouraged individuals in Ukraine to apply for visas online via their website, however, Wills said the website was not accepting any new visa applications except for those from Tonga.
"It is broadcasted everywhere 'Ukrainians apply online', but these fast-tracked visas are from a year ago or before Covid-19. There is no 'apply online'."
Wills had applied for a border exemption, which he said was the only option and could take a few days to get an answer.
"In the meantime, mumma's worst-case scenario is she is sitting on the corner of a gym somewhere in Slovakia with her backpack.
"We don't want them (NZ Immigration) to do anything special, she will qualify for the visa regardless, we just want them to fast-track the process."
Mariia Torbina desperately waits for her mum Tetiana Torbina to cross the Ukrainian border and then wants to fly her to New Zealand. Photo / Supplied
Wills said part of the reason Torbina could not leave any sooner was there was no guarantee they could even get her here.
"In the end, things were getting so desperate, she had to leave anyway."
Torbina had traveled extensively across Ukraine, and then Russia, but not outside the former Soviet Union, said Wills.
"I don't know if she's ever been on an aircraft.
"In peace time, we were a bit worried about flying her to New Zealand by herself, it is just unbelievable now."
Minister of Immigration Kris Faafoi announced yesterday the Government was considering further border exemptions for wider family members of Ukrainians in New Zealand.
"New Zealand was one of the first to give humanitarian support to Ukrainians when Russia invaded, and although we know the numbers are small, we are fast-tracking support for Ukrainians to remain in or return to New Zealand immediately," Faafoi said.
Tetiana Torbina, 64, has left Ukraine's Kryvyi Rih city in a packed train to an unknown destination. Family in Northland is hopeful she gets through the border. Photo / Supplied
The INZ website says it is already prioritising urgent visa applications from Ukrainian nationals.
