I had never left Ukraine “, refugees in search of family and friends abroad

Catherine's parents woke him up at 5: 00 a.m. and told him to file and phone and then leave their home in Dnipro in eastern Ukraine to relatives in Poland.

It took 19 days to reach the Medyka border crossing in Poland, about 1,000 kilometers from Dnipro. It was the first time she had traveled alone, without family or friends.

But waiting to get on a train to stay with an aunt who lives in the western Polish town of Erocla just hours after she arrived at the site, Caterina, who did not give her last name, said she now felt safe.

She said, "All of them were very helpful."

Relief agencies say that, like Caterina, many of the 1.3 million people who have left Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian occupation on February 24th, are linked to the vast Ukrainian diaspora, family or friends in which they can seek refuge.

This has helped alleviate pressure on government-backed waiting centres or refugee centres that have risen along Ukraine's borders throughout Central Europe in schools, conference centres and tents.

“At the moment we're watching people go where they're related,” told Reuters in a telephone interview United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Philippo Grandi.

Speaking after visiting Moldova's border with Ukraine, Grandi said that as Russian forces continue with their attacks, refugees with fewer resources will leave. This will be a more complex situation,” he said.

Grandi wrote on Twitter Sunday: “More than 1.5 million refugees from Ukraine have gone to neighboring countries in 10 days”.

Brussels district authorities have created an online form for those who want to wait Ukrainians, which includes questions such as whether children or smokers are welcome.

In Germany, refugees disperse into federal states, and from there to individual circles and cities to organise housing, Klankosova broadcasts.tv.

A total of 227,446 Ukrainians have fled to Romania since 24 February, including 31,628 on Saturday, border police data showed. Out of total, 155,680 have already been expelled or fled from Romania.

Poland, which has the largest Ukrainian community of 1.5 million people in Europe, has seen at least 800,000 refugees arriving in just over a week.

But as of Friday, only 20,000 people are staying at waiting centres and hotels established by the government to wait for over 250,000.

The other “The other part is with family and acquaintances”, Polish Prime Minister Milchal Derrick's cabinet chief said.

Foreigners also help in what has become a massive volunteer effort, very well co-ordinated

Marek Peasecki, said one of his sons recorded him on an internet site establishing refugees with families on the same day Russia began its invasion. One day later, he received a phone call.

“We were told Friday that two women and two children would come,” he told Reuters from his home on the outskirts of Warsaw capital.

“Four hours after we received information about them, they were in our house”, he said, broadcast Clankosova. tv

But he added that he was concerned that many people were unprepared to care for foreigners. In such situations the state is really the best option, because people would like to return to normal life very quickly, both the host and the guests.

The city of Warsaw has established accommodation centres in public gyms, as well as hotels and office buildings, but nearly 4,000 rooms or apartments have also been provided by residents.

At a co-ordination centre in the Czech capital, Prague, Alyona Kubanskih, a 20-year-old engineering student from the eastern city of Ukraine, Zaporizie, said he was going to stay with friends of a friend in Prague.

It is one of about 50,000 Ukrainians who have arrived in the Czech Republic by Friday, where over a quarter of a million Ukrainians already live.

I haven't actually crossed borders before, so it's all new to me. I had never left Ukraine before,” she said.