Ukraine war: Poland's army of volunteers help fleeing refugees

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Refugee reception centre
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The centre was originally set up to hold 200 people - there are now 600 beds

As the conflict in Ukraine continues there are now estimated 1.5 million refugees in Poland alone.

They cross the border by car, train or on foot and head to reception centres in towns and villages along the border. The title sounds official, but these "centres" are makeshift sports halls or community centres, staffed largely by volunteers.

We visited one of them in the town of Hrubieszow. Originally a small community hall, it's now busy and chaotic, filled with disorientated and scared refugees.

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Aneta Nowaczewska has spent the last few weeks helping to run the centre.

Aneta Nowaczewska lives nearby and has spent the last few weeks helping to run the centre. She tells us that they were originally set up to look after 200 people at the start of the invasion, there are now 600 beds crammed into the tiny space.

Volunteers provide food and blankets donated by the local community, but also from areas all over Europe, including aid from Scotland.

Some people stay for a few hours to get some sleep and a bite to eat and move on somewhere else. Every so often an announcement is made over a loudspeaker offering people lifts to other areas of Poland.

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Volunteers hand food out to children

Outside, cars, vans and minibuses arrive bringing more refugees, while others leave taking people to Krakow, Warsaw or elsewhere in Poland.

Some people simply don't know where to go and stay sleeping in the tiny makeshift beds. Perhaps hoping they'll wake up and it's all a terrible dream. In the corner an area has been set up with blankets and soft toys for the many children to play with.

Later in the week we move on to the main railway station in Krakow, 300 miles from the border. This is where trains from Lviv arrive.

Image source, Getty Images
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Refugees sleep in makeshift beds at the station

Image source, Getty Images
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Makeshift beds left for refugees coming into Krakow station

Refugees sleep wherever they can. They are surrounded by suitcases and shopping bags containing whatever they managed to gather before leaving Ukraine. Children play with the family pets, while the parents sit motionless, trying to comprehend what has happened.

It's a scene I never though I'd see in Europe in the 21st Century and on more than one occasion had to hold back tears.

But despite the despair and fear, walking among those in need, there was a small army of helpers, quietly walking around, offering a smile and some food.

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These volunteers were IT workers who just wanted to help

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Refugees at the station are surrounded by suitcases and shopping bags containing the belongings they managed to grab

I spoke to a couple of people looking after a makeshift food stall. They were both IT workers who finished work at 17:00 and then went to the station and gave out soup and bread till long after midnight. They didn't have a particular connection to Ukraine, but just felt that they should help.

Throughout the night, numerous people turn up with makeshift trays of sandwiches, juice, fruit and sweets. Some have high-viz jackets and look "official", but it's obvious that some of the others have raided the local supermarket and headed to the station to give out what they had bought.

Elsewhere on the concourse a man in a pirate hat distributes sweets and balloons to the children. Some parents drag their children away, grumbling that their children have already had too many sweets. Several children take a sweet, then run to the back of the queue so they can come back around for another.

Scenes like these are replicated all over Poland. Millions of people forced to flee their homes with no idea where to go or how to get there. As the conflict in Ukraine continues, the number of refugees will only increase.

War in Ukraine: More coverage