x
Breaking News
More () »

Will Ukrainian refugees flee to Florida?

The world is watching and refugee groups are at the ready to see if the invasion of Ukrainian triggers another refugee crisis.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Millions of people in Ukraine could be without a home soon. 

The world is watching, and refugee groups are at the ready to see if the invasion of Ukrainian triggers another refugee crisis.

Most refugees are expected to flee to countries closer to Ukraine, but how many could come to restart their lives in North Florida?

Ukrainians are reportedly one of the top groups of refugees to resettle in the U.S. in recent years, outnumbering Syrian refugees eight to one in 2019.

Reports show 25 Ukrainians have relocated to Florida in nearly a year and a half. Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida helps those families resettle, but the future is now uncertain for families who have not yet made the move.

Photos and video show families fleeing Ukraine to Poland, some taking only what they can carry.

Will more Ukrainians flee to Florida? Laura Cook, director of resettlement at Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida, is unsure. She says a couple just moved to the area to live with their son on Friday.

"We have someone coming on the 31st," Cook said. "So I'm not sure what that would look like."

Ukrainians often enter the U.S. through the Lautenberg Program, a Soviet-era amendment allowing people from the former Soviet Union who are religious minorities to reunite with family in the U.S. Cook says the process takes two years and that the program has not been renewed this year.

Cook says she's used to changes doing this job, but she's unsure now how things will change for Ukrainian refugees.

"I'm very unsure," she said. "I think with refugee resettlement, they change all the time. Families, even from other countries, are booked, and then they're unbooked for certain reasons, whether that be illness or whatnot. So for resettlement, it really changes from day to day."

Up until the time refugees' step off a plane, Lutheran Social Services is at the mercy of various government agencies. 

Before You Leave, Check This Out