Kyiv battles sub-zero temperatures after Russian strikes cut heat to thousands of buildings, but residents vow to stay and endure the hardship
KYIV: Residents of the Ukrainian capital are enduring sub-zero temperatures after Russian strikes left thousands of residential buildings without heating.
Massive strikes on Friday killed at least four people and left half the city’s residential buildings without heat as temperatures hovered around -10°C.
Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko described the situation as “very difficult” and urged residents to consider temporarily evacuating.
Natalia, a 45-year-old manager, has had no electricity, heat, or water in her home for over 42 hours but said she will not leave the city.
“I haven’t left Kyiv a single second since the full-scale invasion,” she told AFP.
“What did we do then? We made Molotov cocktails. I won’t leave… I have my house here, I have my job and I love my city.”
Klitschko said on Sunday that 1,000 buildings in Kyiv were still without heat, down from an initial 6,000 immediately after the strikes.
Many residents rely on electric heating, but Ukraine’s power grid has been severely damaged by Russian attacks since the war began.
Emergency services have set up special tents across the city where people can warm up, eat, and charge their devices.
Olena, a 50-year-old English teacher, said community support and the emergency tents help residents cope with the extreme conditions.
“We support each other, dress warm, smile and wait,” she said.
She finds strength in a scarf that belonged to her grandmother, who survived World War II.
“You put it on and you remember all that our people have endured. We will endure, too. We can’t give up,” Olena said.
Sunday marked the 1,418th day of Russia’s war on Ukraine, matching the duration of the Soviet Union’s fight against Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945.
