Svitlana Martyniuk’s clothes have frozen in her flat after washing. She hasn’t had heating since a Russian attack on energy infrastructure on Jan. 9. Her building has problems with power. People started using radiators to heat their apartments and the electrical network couldn’t keep up.
“It’s nine degrees at the moment. I am frozen. How can I warm myself if I don’t have electricity?” said Ms. Martyniuk, 73.
More than half of Kyiv is struggling with a lack of heating and electricity after the barrage on Jan. 9 and another major strike on Jan. 20. Since 2023, Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system have been systematic, repeatedly targeting power plants, critical infrastructure and residential buildings.
Kyiv will have a little respite as the forecast grows warmer next week, but there's no predicting when the blackouts can stop – especially if Russia attacks again, as Ukraine's President warns they could.
Once Khristina Volodina has filled the generator, there is power at the café where she works. Businesses across Kyiv must do the same.
Each blackout appears intended to reinforce Moscow’s message: that the Ukrainian government cannot protect its citizens and should be pressed into accepting a peace deal, regardless of the terms.
Amid the attacks, Kyiv is covered in snow and temperatures drop to around -15 to -17 degrees daily. But the Ukrainian government has had to ration power using unplanned, emergency power outages due to the shortage of energy.
“Power cuts can last more than 16 hours. This is the current reality,” said Serhiy Kovalenko, chief executive of energy provider Yasno, in a Monday post to social media.
During the daytime, there is a constant low hum from the generators in the city. Inside people’s homes, the temperature ranges from 14 to 19 degrees.
Once the sun goes down, almost all districts are plunged into darkness, with a brief respite when the electricity happens to return.
Ms. Martyniuk has only three to four hours of electricity a day, but despite this, she plans to stay in Kyiv. She said that she can’t leave her work: She’s responsible for managing the housing co-operative that she lives in, and other residents are also struggling with cold rooms and long gaps without power.
Ms. Martyniuk tries to stay warm by wearing as many clothes as she can and filling hot water bottles at night.
President Volodymyr Zelensky declared a state of emergency in the country’s energy sector on Jan. 14.
“The consequences of Russian strikes and worsening weather conditions are severe,” said Mr. Zelensky on Telegram.
“Repair crews, energy companies, municipal services and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine continue working around the clock to restore electricity and heating supplies. Many issues require urgent solutions.”
He also announced preparations for further Russian strikes.
Despite the desperate conditions, Ms. Martyniuk said that Ukraine cannot give into Russian aggression.
“They want to kill all of us. We saw how they ‘liberated’ cities and then killed civilians who stayed. They are pushing us into it, but we shouldn’t surrender,” she said.
Anastasiia Sirotkina is covering her cat with blankets. The 55-year-old has access to some heating in her apartment, but it’s still only 14 degrees indoors. Without electricity, the pumps required to circulate heat in her building aren’t functioning properly.
After the attack on Jan. 9, she went almost two straight days without power. “It’s better now, we have three hours per day,” Ms. Sirotkina said.
It’s hard to predict when the electricity will return, so she listens closely for the sound of her appliances coming back to life. “When I hear the click, that means the electricity returns. This means I can have a hot shower, even if it is in the middle of the night,” she said.
To heat her apartment, Ms. Sirotkina collects stones and places them above the gas burner in a pan. She uses a solar panel to charge her phone.
“I am wearing many layers of clothing, a winter coat and living like this all the time – even cooking borsch in this outfit. It’s good that I didn’t throw away my old winter coat. It warms me, and I am not upset if it gets dirty after cooking,” she said.
She and her friends have discussed the option to leave the city if the situation becomes critical. They are considering going to houses in the countryside, where they can generate heat by burning wood in a stove.
Olena Ritso and her family, who fled Bakhmut early in the war, must now endure more hard times when their Kyiv apartment grows cold at night.
Olena Ritso, 55, and her 13-year-old daughter Anastasiia have sought warmth in a local shopping mall. They spend a few hours in the mall during the evenings, just to be in a warm place before they return home to weather another night in their cold apartment. To make simple cooking possible, Ms. Ritso bought a small gas stove.
The family, originally from Bakhmut in Eastern Ukraine, moved to Kyiv in 2022, leaving everything behind.
Ms. Ritso said the disruptions from the attacks have been especially hard on her daughter. “She is experiencing the shelling very painfully, she even pulls out her hair from fear. And to leave everything here and move to a new place again would be very difficult for her,” she said. “She has her school here and friends. That’s why we are planning to stay in the city despite all difficulties and cold.”
The cat watches Ms. Ritso work with the portable gas stove that helps her with meals.
In these freezing conditions, Kyiv’s citizens refuse to lose heart. They stay optimistic and continue on with daily life. Neighbours make each other tea, and bring groceries to seniors and others in need of help. Some community members offer hot lunches for people who can’t afford them, while others play music and gather for barbecues near their apartment buildings.
Ms. Sirotkina said that if the city were empty, it would be easier for Russians to capture it.
“They won’t succeed,” she said. “The cold is not the biggest sorrow. We are not panicking. Yes, we hate Putin, and we understand that he wants to make us angry at our authorities that we are freezing. But the root of the problem is not here – it’s in Russia,” she said.
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