Pawel Florkiewicz, Anita Komuves

MEDYKA/BEREGSURANY (Hungary) – Around 100,000 people fled Russia’s invading Ukraine on Saturday.

Fearful families queued up at the European Union border to try and get into Poland, Slovakia and Romania as Russian forces carried out coordinated missile and artillery attacks on multiple cities, including Kyiv.

Ilona Varga, 69, crossed the border into Europe via Beregsurany in Hungary. She left behind her shop, home and hopes that she will soon return.

Varga stated that her children are telling Varga to go to Hungary permanently. It is hard to let go of everything. I am a native, and I grew up in this area. I also have my job here. Everything ties me together.

A further 9000 people have crossed into Poland from Ukraine, the largest Ukrainian population in the area, Pawel Szefernaker, the Deputy Interior Minister, said at a press conference.

Many thousands of Ukrainians were waiting for authorities to register them as refugees at Medyka, in south Poland. It is located about 85km (50 miles) away from Lviv, Ukraine.

Taras (25 years old) said that she arrived at the Polish crossing today at 3 a.m., and was waiting for her wife. She called me from Ukraine and said that there was a 30-kilometre long queue of people and cars. “She said that she doesn’t know when she will cross.”

Czech Railways sent special trains carrying Ukrainians to the Polish border, which arrived at dawn on Saturday.

Officials set up refugee camps in Ubla near the Slovakian border. There, they used a gymnasium to provide beds for refugees and air mattresses. Children played with donated stuffed toys while volunteers gave out snacks.

Miroslava Krackovska, receptionist at the centre said that “We came to border with taxi” and she was going to Prague for her husband.

As she saw new information on her cell phone, a woman broke down and wept. The woman in front of her quickly handed the handset to her.

Two buses transporting ethnic Bulgarians to Odessa, arrived in Bulgaria early Saturday morning. Another bus was currently on its way. Bulgaria also sent 4 buses to Kyiv in order to help the 250,000 people who are part of its Ukrainian minority.

The shelling of her hometown by a Ukrainian couple was described by one woman and the other her escape attempt.

Tanya Mitova (an ethic Bulgarian) said that she hid in bathrooms for two days after arriving in Durankulak in northeastern Bulgaria, near the Romanian border.

“There was shelling. There were airplanes flying above, it was extremely scary.