Chmerkovsky, who immigrated to the United States from Ukraine with his family in the 1990s, posted two new videos on Instagram Friday from Kiev, where he is currently working on the reality contest series “UA Dance World,” according to his representative.
Chmerkovskiy began the first stanza “I’m here, again, I’m safe. We are not asked to move, I just follow instructions. That’s all I can say.” “But the truth is, I’m also talking to my friends who are here, the Ukrainians, and the situation is just really appalling.”
“People are mobilized” in Ukraine, Chmerkovsky added. “The whole country is being called to go to war. Men, women, and boys… come forward, get weapons, and deploy to defend the country.”
“What I realize is that my friends who are here, their mothers and fathers here, and the old people who are here, they just can’t escape,” Chmerovsky said emotionally.
He debuted with the successful ABC Dance Competition series during the second season in 2005. He won the competition in 2014, and also served as a guest judge the following year during season 21.
Shmerovsky married fellow “DWTS” professional, Peta Murgatroyd in 2017. The parents of their 5-year-old son Shay.
According to Chmerovsky’s representative, Murgatroyd and the couple’s son are not with him in Ukraine.
Late Thursday, Murgatroyd posted on her official Instagram account asking for a “prayer” for her husband.
“I don’t usually order these things from my social network, but today is very difficult and the next few will be even more difficult,” she wrote. “My pain is overwhelming and I suffer, but sending your positive light and your love to him will mean the world to me.”
She added that her husband is currently “safe” and asked people who are reading to “pray for him to come home soon.”
She added, “I grew up loving this country several times, and I visited them in an unfathomable situation.”
CNN’s Sandra Gonzalez contributed to this report.
