"The war has started." Brazilians living in Ukraine woke up this Thursday morning (24) with messages like this, noises of explosions and bombing alarm sirens.
The Russian attacks took people by surprise, especially those living in and around Kiev, hundreds of kilometers from the border and the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Lugansk.
This is the case of publicist Cristiane Barros Nedashkovskaya, 30, from Pará, who lives in Bila Tserkva, in the Kiev metropolitan region, one of the cities hit by the air strikes.
"I woke up at 5am to the sound of the explosion, the alarm siren going off because of the shock. Then I heard more explosions, drones flying overhead. It was a desperation, a very tense moment."
Married to a Ukrainian and living in the country for a year and a half, Cristiane went to try to fill up her car so she could travel to the border with Romania.
She spent hours in line at the gas station. The city exits are congested with cars trying to leave the place.
The war also hit a well-known group in Ukraine: Brazilian soccer players. There are athletes in a hotel in Kiev with family members.
Shakhtar Donetsk striker Junior Moraes posted the following message on Instagram: "All friends, the situation is serious and we are stuck in Kiev waiting for a solution to get out! Pray for us!"
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon