Illustration: #RomanaRuban
//
It is impossible to evacuate from many cities in the east and south of Ukraine without a car. Someone flees by their own vehicle or joins friends. Other people have a chance for salvation thanks to bus drivers who risk their lives traveling to hot spots or territories occupied by Russia. Drivers come under fire and pass dozens of enemy checkpoints on their way but continue evacuation flights.
One of the main obstacles to safely evacuating civilians is Russia's continued violation of agreements on "green corridors" and a ceasefire. The Russian authorities are deliberately disrupting the evacuation towards Ukrainian-controlled territories so that people have no choice but to agree to deportation to Russian or occupied cities. So every trip becomes dangerous, and many drivers lose their cars or even their lives.
Sometimes, drivers spend 30 to 70 hours behind the wheel due to the need to wait out shelling or stand at Russian checkpoints.
However, at the end of the road, the volunteers receive the best reward for themselves—the sincere gratitude of the rescued passengers, who reached a safer place with children and animals. When people leave the occupied cities, see the first Ukrainian checkpoint, and hear the Ukrainian language from the military, they usually cry and laugh with relief.