Seven hundred Ukrainians arrived in Kyiv from Moscow on a special train on the morning of March 29. The train is part of the government’s efforts to evacuate Ukrainians who got stuck abroad after the country stopped all flights, trains, and buses in an attempt to fight the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Starting March 29, the government closed the border for all passenger connections. Ukrainians traveling individually will still be allowed to return to the country on foot or by car, according to Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.
As the train arrived from Moscow, the police closed the platform and the train station. When the train arrived, medics wearing protective costumes went inside to take the temperature of all passengers. It took two hours before the passengers were allowed to leave the train. They headed to the taxis parked outside the station. Most of them were wearing masks.
As of the morning of March 29, Moscow had over 1,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19. The city is populated by 12.6 million people.
Kyiv, home to approximately 3.7 million people, has 82 registered cases of the disease as of the morning of March 29.
