Viņķele on Kyiv train journey: several night evacuations during air raid alerts
Former Latvian health minister Ilze Viņķele wrote on social media about a train trip from Kyiv to Poland, during which passengers were evacuated several times because of air raid alerts. She says she had not experienced anything so intense on her earlier trips to Ukraine.
Ilze Viņķele, a former health minister of Latvia, has described on social media a recent train journey from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv to Poland, during which passengers repeatedly had to leave the carriages because of air raid alerts. The war in Ukraine is ongoing, and Viņķele has worked and travelled there for almost two years. By her account, she had never before experienced anything this intense.
Evacuations on the way
Viņķele writes that she eventually lost count of how many times they had to evacuate. The first time, passengers were taken out in a small town, where being outside the train seemed even more dangerous, as explosions were heard nearby. The second time, the train stopped between two other trains, with nowhere to take cover.
She notes that children and elderly people were on board. Foreigners among the passengers were easy to spot, as they seemed somewhat disoriented, while Ukrainians mostly already have experience of such evacuations. A British woman injured her leg while jumping from the train and then fainted, and another woman had a panic attack. Viņķele talked to her and embraced her; it turned out the woman had often visited relatives in Riga in her youth.
With each new evacuation the night grew deeper and fewer passengers got off, as many, exhausted, simply stayed lying down. Viņķele got out every time. In moments of fear she held on to boxing gloves, a gift from a friend in Kyiv, which she had tied to her bag.
The journey continues
The train reached Poland five hours late. From there Viņķele took a taxi to the airport together with two Ukrainian women; one of them was flying to Barcelona to see her daughter and grandchildren. Viņķele made it onto her flight.
She concludes by saying she is grateful for the good life in Latvia and hopes there is always a hand to hold when it is needed.
