People are fleeing from Ukraine’s southern city of Kherson, taking any means necessary – even travelling by foot, CNN reports. As per the news organization, people are willing to take any risks to escape.  

Kherson, which is importantly placed near the Black Sea, and at the mouth of the Dnieper River, was one of the first Ukrainian cities to fall after Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops on February 24. 

Since then, Kherson and areas surrounding it have been terrified of Moscow’s second onslaught on the war-torn country, but people are even more afraid of the referendum slated to take place, Wednesday. 

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Upon capturing the city, Russian forces established a Kherson People’s Republic, a new entity that mirrors the setups in the Donbas region. Ukraine has noted that Russia plans to hold a referendum vote in Kherson, which many believe to be a sham. Moscow expects this event to display popular support for the newly established people’s republic. 

While CNN reported the referendum is to take place on April 27, Russian-backed officials informed of some new appointments in Kherson, leading some to believe that the referendum might be put off. Ukrainian officials, as early as Wednesday, have claimed that Russia has troubles with the plan to conduct polls. 

Russia initially sent troops claiming to want to “denazify” and “demilitarize” Ukraine. While the first round of assault saw slow troop movement on the ground, Russian forces did capture some points and switched to airstrikes, often targeting civilians. 

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Over time, and a change in leadership – with army general Aleksandr Dvornikov, or the Butcher of Syria, taking control of operations in Ukraine, Russian forces have opted for an attack from the east. This has seen far more success, with Ukrainian officials also admitting the loss of cities. A push from the south, after incessant shelling, has also yielded results with Russian troops capturing all of Mariupol except for the last resistance group holed up at the Azovstal steel plant. 

Areas occupied by Russian troops have shown horrors, like the mass graves uncovered in Bucha after the withdrawal of forces from the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions.