Dallas Woman Shares Frightening Story Of Escape From Ukraine With Her Mother

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - A Dallas woman is safe inside her home after a five-day journey to escape with her mother from war-torn Ukraine.

She documented the harrowing trip through videos posted on her Facebook page.

What was supposed to be an annual trip to see her parents in Ukraine, ended abruptly for Olena Partow when only one day into it, she had to come up with a daring escape plan.

The Dallas esthetician begged her mother, Lyubov Karpova, to come with her on a journey that took them across the country to Hungary.

Partow documented their travel by car through snow, on a packed train and frequent trips to bomb shelters when they heard sirens.

The most frightening part of the trip was when her train was perilously close to the Russian border.

'They told us to shut off all the phones to be really quiet and cover the windows with curtains. It was the middle of the night and my train was going really, really slow and this moment it felt like went through World War II like the Jewish people who were hurt for nothing," said Partow.

Partow says there's comfort having her mother by her side in Dallas, but overwhelming concern still about her dad's safety.

"I do worry because I wasn't able to take him," she said. "He went to say goodbye, but I was scared to leave the train because the train was already full. I just touch the window and say 'goodbye' and say 'I love you'."

Partow says she wants to come up with a fundraiser for the people of Ukraine who she knows are suffering.