'She's confused to no end': St. Pete man rescues 7-year-old granddaughter from Ukraine

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Millions of people have escaped Ukraine following Russia’s invasion in February, and among those is a 7-year-old girl whose grandparents live in the Tampa Bay area.

Herbert McClain traveled from St. Petersburg to Romania to rescue his granddaughter from the war-stricken country.

"She's a refugee. She's been taken away from her family. She's over here in America. She doesn't speak the language. She's confused to no end," Herbert McClain said.

His wife, Marina, is from Ukraine, and her family still lives there. When Russia invaded the country, they called for help.

"He called us on the phone and said, ‘hey, you know, bombs are starting to drop. You know, people are starting to die. Can you help us out?’ It's like, well, of course, she’s, my granddaughter," McClain said.

They spent nearly a month in various hotels and doing paperwork for a Visa to bring her back to the United States. Her parents stayed in Ukraine to fight for their country.

"People really don't understand the real love that the Ukrainians have for their country. And I can respect that because I love my country very much," McClain.

Trying to shield her as best they can, she believes she’s on vacation.

"It was nothing that I wouldn't expect every American in this country to do," he said. "OK. Your mother, brother, father, sister and whatever, if you had a person in harm's way, you would do whatever you had to do to make it happen, and I did that."

They’re not sure how long she will be with them, but they’re working to get her enrolled in school and obtain health insurance.