Stranded in Ukraine with Covid-infected son, Australian mum talks of her fears

Nataliya Poshyvaylo-Towler, an Australian mother-of-two of Ukrainian descent, found out her son had tested positive for Covid-19 at the worst possible moment.

Last week, they were preparing to fly from Ukraine to Melbourne, where they live, after receiving an advisory from Australian authorities that citizens should immediately leave Ukraine over fears a Russian invasion could be imminent.

To board a plane back, Nataliya needed to complete a declaration form and show a negative Covid-19 test.

“I’m looking at the email with results and there’s an email coming from DFAT (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) – ‘evacuate now’. And the result is positive,” Nataliya recalled.

“My legs started shaking, I didn’t know what to do,” she said.

Nataliya and her son Michael had to miss the February 9 flight and remain in Poltava, a town 300 kilometres to the southeast of capital Kiev. They stayed with Nataliya’s parents, who they had been visiting for Orthodox Christmas.