Hundreds of people who had fled their homes in Russian-occupied Kherson were seen evacuating in a convoy of vehicles Sunday afternoon driving north toward the city of Kryvyi Rih.
A CNN team on the ground in southern Ukraine counted at least 120 cars coming up through the town of Kochubeivka. Some vehicles had white cloths wrapped around the door handles and side mirrors, while others had banners with the word “children” written on them.
Olga, 17, told CNN her family began their journey early in the morning, for a second time. The first time they tried, it was forbidden to leave, she said.
I hate them,” she said of the Russian soldiers.
“I was scared, but there were few checkpoints,” she added about the route to evacuate.
Olga said shops in Kherson were empty, and noted cellphone and internet connections had been cut around 9:15 p.m. on Saturday evening.
The CNN team saw families crammed into cars, many with elderly parents; other evacuees were seen shielding their pets, as artillery fire could be heard in the background and smoke billowed into the sky.
