Manc in desperate dash to flee war-torn Ukraine after risking life to visit his girlfriend

A Manchester man is being forced to make a desperate dash to flee Ukraine after risking his life to visit his girlfriend.

Jez Myers, 44, has split his time between his home city and Kyiv, where his Ukrainian partner lives, since 2018.

He was due to travel to the Eastern European country on February 14 but decided it was not safe due to the looming threat of a Russian invasion.

Instead, he travelled to Gdansk in Poland where he met up with his partner, Maria Romanenko.

READ MORE: The tears, anger and defiance of Ukrainian families in Greater Manchester who woke up to war

They spent nine days there before deciding to risk a return to Ukraine.

However, after flying into Kyiv yesterday morning, they were stunned to discover that the country was in a state of national emergency.

They packed their belongings ready to leave if necessary, and spent last night staying with friends on the outskirts of the capital.

Explosions were heard in Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities early this morning after Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a military operation had begun.

But it was not until Jez and Maria woke up that they discovered the country had been invaded by Russian troops.

"We woke up to loads of message and lots of news," explained Jez, who works as a business consultant.

"We knew absolutely nothing about anything that had gone on through the night.

"It was a case of 'right, let's go'.

"We already had everything packed and contingency plans in place."

The couple set out for Lviv, near to Ukraine's border with Poland, at about 10am.

Many Ukrainians had the same idea.

Jez and Maria were faced with huge queues of traffic as thousands of people desperately attempted to flee Kyiv.

"People were scared," said Jez.

"There