Strictly Come Dancing’s Nikita Kuzmin reunites with grandmother after she escapes Kyiv
Strictly Come Dancing star Nikita Kuzmin has shared the happy news that he has been reunited with his grandmother after her tough journey to escape Ukraine.
The professional dancer who partnered Tilly Ramsay in the most recent series of the BBC One show had previously shared his anguish at trying to get his family out of his home country which is under Russian attack.
Read more: Judge Rinder trolled over travelling to Ukraine border by Right Said Fred
On Friday evening, Kuzmin, 24, shared photos with his grandmother who he had finally managed to meet up with in safety in Poland.
He wrote on Instagram: "REUNITED picked up my grandma from Poland! She is so incredibly brave & strong, 2 nights without sleeping, walking 8km+ in the freezing cold, when on a normal day, she can barely walk!
"She traveled from Kiev, my mom flew from Rome and i drove from Frankfurt and we all reunited in Krakow! Just so happy to be together."
Kuzmin's photos showed their emotional reunion at the train station, but he added that his family had still not all reached safety as his aunt, other grandmother and grandfather are stuck in Kyiv.
Read more: Russian dancer Pasha Kovalev says he will raise money for children in Ukraine
He also shared a video of the busy station as refugees arrived and praised volunteers for their kindness and organisation, but said that he had felt overwhelmed by the situation as he waited for his family.
The dancer wrote: "When I was waiting for my mom and grandma at the train station, i’ve been immersed in this situation for the first time in real life. Although I know I should have been happy for my family, I couldn’t. Just had tears on my eyes, because of how sad the situation is. How many thousands of kids and women doing their absolute best to stay strong.
"I’ve seen people arriving from the border, people waiting for the next train to go somewhere, anywhere in hope that somehow things would be ok, people not knowing what to do, since all what they have known as home, it’s not there anymore."
Kuzmin urged his fans to help out in any way that they could by donating money, supplies or supporting small businesses and added "just do something" as well as "don't stay silent".
Meanwhile, former Strictly contestant Robert Rinder is preparing to report on the situation next week for taslkRadio, where he will attempt to meet the grandparents of his dance partner from the show Oksana Platero as they flee Ukraine.
Watch: Tilly Ramsay and Nikita Kuzmin waltz on Strictly Come Dancing