'We were lucky to get on this flight': Ukrainians arrive in Edmonton on donated plane
CTV
Dozens of Ukrainians who fled the war in their home country arrived in Edmonton Monday night.
Dozens of Ukrainians who fled the war in their home country arrived in Edmonton Monday night.
The Polish Airlines LOT Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight, arranged by former MLA Thomas Lukaszuk and former Premier Ed Stelmach, arrived at the Edmonton International Airport just before 7 p.m.
About 30 Alberta families will host more than 60 Ukrainians. Several more were expected to come on this plane, but they were not able to get a visa at the Canadian embassy in Warsaw on time.
"It's bittersweet," Ivan Lypovyk told CTV News Edmonton. He's hosting five of the people on the plane, but another few he was expecting stayed behind in the Polish capital.
"It's so stressful," he added. "The families who left their loved ones in Ukraine fighting for Ukraine, they're mothers with kids, they have to flee through the border."
Valentina Gogvozd is one of those mothers. She took a quick decision and "jumped in the car" toward the Polish border with her six- and nine-year-old sons.
"We were lucky to get on this flight," said Gogvozd's brother-in-law, Andrii Nabutovskyi, who lives in Red Deer.
