‘I was afraid’: Quebec man recounts wife’s harrowing escape from Ukraine through Poland
Posted March 22, 2022 1:21 pm.
Last Updated March 22, 2022 6:36 pm.
“Do you want to leave or not?”
Those were the words spoken to teacher Viktoriia Kolesnyk in the moments that preceded her harrowing escape out of Ukraine.
Kolesnyk, who is married to a Quebec man, was hiding out in the basement of her school in Nizhyn, Ukraine – a town 250 kilometers northeast of the capital Kyiv – to keep safe from the Russian invasion.
BACKGROUND: ‘Very afraid’: Quebec man’s Ukrainian wife stuck amid conflict near Kyiv
That’s when an escape plan was presented abruptly.
“It is the church that organized this escape and at the last minute asked, ‘Do you want leave or not? You have 10 seconds to answer. Yes? OK, you go.’ And she goes like that,” recounted Kolesnyk’s husband, Sylvain Nelson.
A long journey followed for the Ukrainian woman – more than 1,000 kilometres of travel to get to safety in Warsaw, Poland.
“It was long because she left from Nizhyn and the first night they left overnight in the minibus, changed six times their minibus, always one wait, wait and change, to go to Rivne, more in the western part of Ukraine. And finally, the day after, go in Poland,” said Nelson.
CityNews first spoke to an anxious Nelson on March 9 when he was barely able to reach his wife. Now things are looking up for the couple.
“For the first time since three weeks, I sleep well and I can sleep eight hours,” said Nelson, who is from Durmmondville, Que., about 110 kilometers southeast of Montreal.
Kolesnyk’s safety was not guaranteed if she stayed in Ukraine, her husband believes.
“We see Russia not only target military targets, they target schools, hospitals, residential quarters. Yeah, I was afraid for that.”
The newlywed couple got married on Jan. 14 in Ukraine, but the war derailed their plans to live together
“Now you are in security, now it’s OK,” said Nelson. “We can start the last part to come in Canada and this part it’s not dangerous. I’m just very calm. It’s like I lose the weight of the world on my shoulders.”
The Quebec man submitted Kolesnyk’s application for temporary residency in Canada and is hoping they can reunite soon. But the nightmare is far from being over for their family.
“(She’s) a bit afraid for her parents who stay in Ukraine, some friends. For sure. It’s finished for Viktoriia, but we need to not forget, it’s not finished for a major part of the Ukrainian people.”
