Ukraine Kangaroos in Back of Van Capture Hearts in Viral Video

A video showing kangaroos in the back of a van as they were evacuated from war-torn Ukraine has captured the hearts of the internet.

The kangaroos were rescued from the Feldman Ecopark on the outskirts of Kharkiv, where their enclosures were repeatedly shelled by Russian forces, the park said in a Facebook post.

The viral video, taken by the Ecopark and shared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Ukraine on Twitter, shows the kangaroos stood on a bed of hay in the van as they flee the city.

One of the kangaroos can be seen peering out the back window of the van as they are driven to safety. It is not clear where the kangaroos were being taken to, but the Feldman EcoPark said they "are now safe."

Kharkiv is the second-largest city in Ukraine. It is one of the most severely hit areas and continues to be heavily shelled amid the invasion.

The video of the kangaroos melted the hearts of social media users. The MFA tweet has had over 4,500 likes and been viewed almost 70,000 times. The Feldman Ecopark Facebook video has been viewed over 16,000 times.

In a comment to the video on Twitter, Manuela G said: "It's so beautiful and amazing, how these people take care of the animals. That tells me something about the values ​​and spirit of Ukrainians."

Another comment by O'Balti said: "Thank you, you are angels, so sad to see these beautiful souls involved."

In a caption to the Facebook video, the EcoPark wrote: "We believe that now they will be fine! Many thanks to volunteers and employees who take risks to save animals, as well as to our many friends—caring people, businesses and NGO's who help us financially and make our rescue operations possible."

Feldman Ecopark has gradually been evacuating its animals out of the city, it said in another Facebook post. Among the animals still living at the zoo is Ukraine's only family of tapirs, with a cub. The park said "it is not easy" to evacuate these larger animals.

The park also shared photos of the remains of the shells that had been dropped on the park.

Animal welfare organizations have been working with zoo workers across the country to evacuate wild animals. Many have already been sent to Poland.

At the beginning of March, a truck carrying six tigers, six lions two caracals and an African wild dog made a two-day journey to Poland to escape the war zone. They arrived safely a few days later after a treacherous journey, avoiding blown up roads, which were full of holes and impossible to pass with such cargo, Zoo Poznań spokesperson Malgorzata Chodyla told Reuters.

However many zoo animals still remain in the country. Charities continue to be concerned about the animals survival, as well as their stress levels, health and wellbeing.

As Ukraine entered its second month of war on March 24, the Feldman EcoPark said that "no matter how hard and scary it is, now is the time for us to return to work." Workers continue to arrive on site daily to care for the animals.