LONGWOOD, Fla. – Marisha Murga waited 14 hours to cross the border from Ukraine to Poland, where she eventually connected with her brother, Aleksandr Murga.
He flew from Orlando to Poland to help her, after he said she fled from their home city of Zhytomyr.
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Zhytomyr is located about 87 miles west of Ukraine’s capitol of Kyiv.
Murga said they’ve stayed in touch with people back home and have received pictures showing the damage and rubble, calling it heartbreaking.
He said his sister has been emotional since she met him, after crossing the border on Monday.
He told News 6 she waited on foot in a line that took 14 hours, surrounded by others trying to flee Ukraine. She told her brother there were mothers and children, including a baby just nine days old, all trying to cross the border.
But not everyone Murga knows has been able to flee the country. He told News 6 many of his friends haven’t been able to leave.
“I have some friends that they were just circling around because they left their home, they get to one border, and they’re saying it’s a two day wait, or we’re not letting any people in here at this time, so people just, you know, going from border to border,” Murga said.
Now Murga said his goal is to get his sister a visa to bring her back to the United States so that she can stay with him in Central Florida.
To find resources and ways to help or donate to people in Ukraine, visit Care.org or Project C.U.R.E.