(NewsNation Now) — As Russian forces attempt to encircle the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, hundreds of thousands of people have fled to nearby countries but an Idaho mother worries some of Ukraine’s most vulnerable citizens have been forgotten.
As many as 100,000 orphans spread across 650 orphanages could be directly in harm’s way.
“Our concern is that nobody is talking about the children,” adoptive mother Kimberly McCauley told Adrienne Bankert on “Morning In America” Monday.
That issue is deeply personal for McCauley’s family, who fears their loved ones may be in danger.
McCauley, who was joined by her adopted daughter Alina, is trying to move Alina’s two brothers to safety but said the Ukrainian government isn’t allowing orphans to leave orphanages.
The Idaho mother called on members of congress to intervene in the crisis.
“I have dozens of friends who are trying to get their host children to safety. They have American families that will fly to Poland, some of them are on the ground in Poland right now, willing to give these children a home,” said McCauley.
Alina, who appeared visibly emotional Monday, confirmed that she had been in touch with her brothers and both appear to be safe for now. She’s worried that could change in the coming days.
The boys are at orphanages in Chernihiv and Gorodyna, said McCauley. Both cities are in the northern part of Ukraine where heavy fighting has occurred.
McCauley is hoping the boys can be moved to Poland or western Ukraine where the fighting is less severe.
Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said Sunday that 352 Ukrainian civilians have been killed, including 14 children. It said an additional 1,684 people, including 116 children, have been wounded.
It’s unclear if any of those children were orphans.
According to the U.N., more than 500,000 people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded the country last week and the mass exodus showed no signs of slowing down Monday.
Shabia Mantoo, a UNHCR spokeswoman, said the latest count had 281,000 in Poland, more than 84,500 in Hungary, about 36,400 in Moldova, over 32,500 in Romania and about 30,000 in Slovakia. The rest were scattered in unidentified other countries, she said.
Those numbers are expected to grow in the coming days.