Thousands of Russians are fleeing their country amid fears Vladimir Putin’s fury will turn on his own people and close the borders, leaving them unable to escape his tyranny.
Trains full of desperate people lugging heavy luggage travelling from St Petersburg have pulled into Helsinki railway station this week.
The route is the only available option for people wanting to travel between Russia and an EU country by rail.
More and more are turning to the option since much of the West has closed its airspace to Russian planes, leaving flights grounded.
Train conductors have reported people carrying heavy bags as they attempt to escape the country before sanctions from the West start to bite ordinary people.
Mail Online reported train user Polina Poliakova saying: “We decided with our families to go back as soon as possible, because it's unclear what the situation will be in a week.”
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Topi Simola, senior vice president of Finnish railway operator VR, said the number of people using the services has increased since Putin invaded Ukraine more than a week ago.
He added: “The trains coming from St Petersburg to Helsinki are now full for the next few days.
“People's motives for travelling on the 3.5 hour twice-a-day service appear to have changed.
“We can see from the luggage they carry that people are moving to somewhere else, they are basically moving for good.”
Russians looking to travel to the West must have visas for most countries, causing problems for those who are looking to leave as to where they should go next.
Many men have fled the country as they fear Putin will start conscripting those not already fighting into his armed forces to join the illegal invasion of Ukraine.
One Russian man, who moved back to Moscow from western Europe around a year ago, said he had bought a flight to Istanbul for the weekend, adding that living in Moscow may no longer be possible.
He said: “I'm afraid that mobilisation will be introduced tomorrow and I won't be able to fly out.
“In my worst nightmares I couldn't have dreamt of such hell when I was coming back a year ago."
Another said: “I don't want to fight in this war.
“We've heard lots of rumours and I don't trust the Kremlin when it says they aren't true.”
Some 7,669 people have been detained at anti-war protests since the invasion began on Feb. 24.
The numbers of fleeing Russians adds to the more than one million Ukrainains who have fled their homeland since the start of the crisis.
U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said: “In just seven days we have witnessed the exodus of one million refugees from Ukraine to neighbouring countries.”
