We reached out to a native Ukrainian Yev Kanivets, a professional mobile engineer who has witnessed Russia's invasion firsthand. He shared his first-hand account with Bored Panda on what happened the past two days.

Yev was living in Kharkiv, which is one of the major cities attacked by Putin. “I woke up at 5 a.m. from the explosions in MY CITY. I was prepared and lucky enough to evacuate in one hour. There were traffic jams around the city, so we spent almost 2 hours going far enough,” Yev wrote in a heartbreaking post on Linkedin.

“I was lucky to evacuate. My wife and I were driving our car the whole day, 14 hours, like crazy to get as far as we could from the danger. We are exhausted, stressed, and worried about mothers who remained in the Kharkiv region.”

When Yev arrived at Kropivnitskiy, he and his family already had a room booked to stay at night. “The hostess was very nice to us,” he said.

“We didn't eat anything the whole day because of stress and couldn't sleep enough. There were Ukrainian jet-fighters flying over us the whole night, so no bombs were dropped. But we couldn't sleep anyway. We worried a lot about our friends that stayed in Kharkiv, which was bombarded and attacked by tanks,” Yev recounted.

The next morning Yev said they woke up tired, still stressed. “But, obviously, it's much better to wake up because of the sun, not explosions. In this part of Ukraine, there were no fights, no Russian troops, it was much easier to get the fuel,” he said. So they fueled the car and departed to the small city near Uman. “Hot dogs and coffee at the fuel station were our breakfast in the new world,” he said.

While driving, Yev and his family visited many small cities. “There was no single person in panic. Everybody stayed calm, friendly, and ready for anything. No problems with goods or resources.”

Because they planned their trip at night and in a hurry, there was a mistake with the booking date. “So when we arrived at Tulchin and asked for our booking we discovered it was for tomorrow. Hence we didn't have a place to spend a night in,” he said.

Yev said that it was the first time we called hotels by phone in our whole lives since he said, “we’re Booking and Airbnb generation.” “We called about a dozen hotels, and all places were taken. Then we tried to increase the area and, finally, found a small room 40 minutes from us. At this point, we were totally exhausted again,” he told us. Yev said that finally, they’re going to sleep well.

“I (and other 40 million Ukrainians) are fully aligned with what official Ukraine's Twitter account says about the situation. The only thing I'd added from my personal experience is that I've never seen Ukraine this united–the Russian invasion was like a catalyst,” Yev said.

Yev urges foreigners to follow the official trustworthy accounts of the Ukrainian government, like this one. “Spread what you see there, so everybody knows what's happening,” he said.

Another way to help is to peacefully press your government to help Ukraine and sanction Russia, says Yev. Donations are very needed as well, so if you want to help Ukraine and support the future of democracy, scroll down below for the list of charities.

President Joe Biden yesterday released a statement condemning Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, and called the attack “unprovoked and unjustified.” Biden stated that “Russia alone is responsible for the death and destruction this attack will bring, and the United States and its Allies and partners will respond in a united and decisive way.” He assured that “the world will hold Russia accountable.”

On Thursday, Biden unveiled a list of sanctions on Russia to punish the country for its full-scale military invasion of Ukraine. The new sanctions include export blocks on technology, a centerpiece of Biden's approach to limit Russia's advancement of its military and aerospace sector as much as possible. In addition, sanctions were applied on Russian banks and "corrupt billionaires," as well as their families who are close to the Kremlin.

However, there was disappointment that the round of sanctions unveiled by the US and Europe did not remove Russia from the SWIFT financial messaging system. Here is the list of global sanctions applied on Russia for the war in Ukraine.

As news of the invasion and its consequences for the Ukrainian people is spreading around the world, making people observe the country in a tragedy unprecedented for the advanced century we live in, you may feel the desire to help. Below are some ways you can help.

Charities that help the war effort

Save Life: This NGO crowdfunds non-lethal military equipment, such as thermal vision scopes, & supplies it to the Donbas front lines. It also provides training for Ukrainian soldiers, as well as researching troops’ needs and social reintegration of veterans.

Donbas SOS: This organization helps those who live in the Donbas war zone, those who relocated to other parts of Ukraine, and freed prisoners of war. It offers legal support, accommodation assistance, and psychological aid among other things.

Crimea SOS: This organization has been helping internally displaced people from Crimea since Russia occupied the peninsula in 2014. It documents Russian authorities' repressions against Crimeans and advocates for the end of the occupation.

Hospitallers : This is a medical battalion that unites volunteer paramedics and doctors to save the lives of soldiers on the frontline. They crowdfund their vehicle repairs, fuel, and medical equipment.

Charities that help children

Tabletochki: This foundation has been supporting children with cancer for 10 years. They procure medicines, equipment, and arrange overseas treatment, among other things.

ChildrenWeWillMakeIt: This movement grew out of a campaign that raised $2 million to get the world's most expensive medicine for a Ukrainian boy with spinal muscular atrophy. It now fundraises for the treatment of other Ukrainian children with SMA.

Ruka ob Ruku: This is a running club for children with disabilities. The initiative gives children an opportunity to train and take part in races together with their parents and volunteers.

Charities for the elderly

Happy Old: This charity provides older people across Ukraine with groceries and medicine, holds educational, entertainment, and sports events, as well as helps with employment. They even created a modeling agency for the elderly.

Let's Help: This charity cares for older people living alone and helps state retirement homes. They also advocate for better treatment of older people by the state, including providing people aged 60+ with easy access to education.

Starenki: It’s a charitable initiative devoted to issues of old age in Ukraine. They help lonely seniors by providing them with groceries and hygiene products.

Charities that help women

Women Perspectives: This organization has been helping women who have faced domestic violence, discrimination in the labor market, and other issues. The NGO works with local and state authorities to promote pro-equality gender policies in Ukraine.

Marsh Zhinok (Women’s March): Every year, on March 8, this initiative holds a rally promoting gender equality and the protection of women from gender-based violence. Currently, the organization is petitioning for Ukraine to adopt the Istanbul Convention.

Charities for blood donation

Blood Agents: It is an NGO that promotes regular, conscious and gratuitous blood donations. They have encouraged people to donate blood over 5,000 times over the past six years.

Donor UA: It is an automated system for recruiting and managing blood donors, designed to promote the donor movement in Ukraine. You can help by signing up and donating blood or by supporting the project with money donation.

Charities for animals

Sirius: The largest shelter for stray animals in Ukraine established in 2000. Its capacity is over 3,000 animals. The institution crowdfunds for animal feed, veterinary drugs, construction and repair of enclosures, and other needs.

Happy Paw: A charity dedicated to solving the problems of homeless animals in Ukraine. The charity helps owners find lost animals, sterilizes domestic animals of people in need & holds lectures on humane treatment of homeless animals for schoolchildren.

UAnimals: A movement for protecting animals from exploitation & abuse. The organization managed to achieve a ban on animal circuses & persuaded many designers participating in Ukrainian Fashion Week to abandon natural fur.

Charities for the environment

Ukraine Without Waste: It is a Ukrainian non-profit promoting the practice of sorting household waste. They educate companies on how to go green at their offices, and hold lectures for the wider public.

Laska: It’s a chain of two charity stores in Kyiv that promote conscious shopping. They accept donated clothes, resell 15% of them, and send the rest to orphanages, homes for the elderly and centers for people with disabilities.

Charities for the homeless

Help the homeless: This initiative supports homeless people & the elderly in need, by providing them with free meals, medicine, hygiene products, clothes & shoes. Launched by a group of volunteers in 2016, the organization has been relying on crowdfunding.

Suka Zhizn: This organization grew big from a 2017 Instagram account launched to tell stories of homeless people. Now volunteers provide various support to the homeless: employment, sorting out documents, searching for relatives & legal counseling.

Charities for investigative journalism

Slidstvo: An independent agency launched in 2012 that produces award-winning documentaries exposing corruption. They have investigated mismanagement of prisons, fraud, money laundering at PrivatBank & the assassination of journalist Sheremet.

UKRPravda News: Founded in 2000 by Gongadze, a prominent journalist who was killed the same year, this publication is among the most influential in Ukraine. The reporters break political scoops and unmask officials who abuse their power.

Zaborona Media: This is an independent media outlet founded by journalists. They investigate topics such as violations of Ukrainian workers’ rights in the Middle East, arms trafficking, and corruption in the construction sector.

Charities that preserve Ukrainian cultural heritage

Parkhomivka Museum: The museum, located in a small village in eastern Kharkiv Oblast, is an 18th-century villa that offers a permanent collection of exhibits by artists as iconic as Picasso, Malevich & Manet. You can support it by coming & buying a ticket.

Save Kyiv Modernism: A movement that unites architects, designers and activists who advocate for the protection of the remarkable Soviet modernist structures across Ukraine.

FrankivskToCareAbout: A movement for the preservation of architectural heritage in the western city of Ivano-Frankivsk. Founded in 2016, the initiative renovates old wooden doors of the city's ancient buildings.

Charities helping with COVID

Svoyi: Svoyi gives free oxygen concentrators to people who contracted COVID & can’t be hospitalized due to personal circumstances or when hospitals are overflowing. It also helps those discharged too early in favour of patients in more serious conditions.

Monsters, Inc.: This organization is based in Odesa and provides emergency medical aid to people living in the region. They also help COVID hospitals, procuring medicines and equipment.