Power cuts and freezing temperatures test Kyiv's resilience after Russian attacks

Nadia, a 31-year-old Kyiv resident, is working from home in thermals, two jumpers and fingerless gloves. Outside, it’s -4 degrees Celsius, and her apartment has no heating, electricity or water.

On days when the temperature has dropped even lower, she has added a coat and hat to her work outfit. “But the fingerless gloves are my best investment,” she says. “When you need to type on your laptop, it saves your life because it's really freezing.”

Nadia is one of hundreds of thousands of people in the Ukrainian capital who have been struggling with lengthy interruptions to heat, electricity and water supplies in recent weeks due to a surge in Russian attacks on energy infrastructure.

At the same time, Kyiv is in the grip of the harshest winter since Russia's full-scale invasion began nearly four years ago. Temperatures have not risen above freezing so far this year and have frequently dipped as low as -10 degrees Celsius.

Ukraine’s government last week declared a state of emergency related to the energy crisis, for the first time since the war began. 

“It’s horrible,” says Sofia, who lives in central Kyiv. Her electricity has been out for more than 48 hours, and she had almost no water supply the previous day. 

“In these conditions, you have no thoughts in your mind except how not to die from being cold, how to cook yourself something, how to take a shower and how to flush the toilet,” she says.

“It is uncomfortable and quite exhausting”, agrees Olga, who lives with her 11-year-old daughter in an apartment on Kyiv’s right bank. Their power has been down for more than 30 hours. 

Without electricity, there is no heating, so the pair have been wearing plenty of layers and “often wrap ourselves in duvets as well”, she says. They still have water, but she adds, “that’s a matter of luck”. 

Survival mode

After a Russian ballistic missile strike on January 9 caused major outages in Kyiv, a second massive attack on January 20 left more than half of the capital’s homes without power and the city’s entire left bank without water. 

Read moreNearly half of Kyiv without heat or power after Russian bombardment

Repairing Ukraine’s battered energy infrastructure in freezing temperatures is dangerous and difficult work.

But local authorities say water has been restored, although not for residents on the upper floors of high-rise buildings that require electric booster pumps to access their supply. 

Power is also slowly returning, but Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Friday that 1,940 apartment buildings were still ​without heating.

Across the city, thousands of people are still gathering in schools and at around 90 “heating points” run by Ukraine’s Emergency Service and the Red Cross, where generators allow them to warm up, charge their phones and connect to the internet.

The hum of generators has become a constant backdrop to city life, says Daria, 36, who lives in the west of the city with her 6-year-old son, and has been going to her generator-powered gym to wash her hair.

“Whenever the sound of generators stops, it means the electricity is back on,” she says.

Daria is not surprised that recent attacks on energy systems have ramped up in intensity. “It is one of the coldest winters for ten years. Of course, the Russians are using this against us,” she says.

Read moreLive: Russia insists Ukraine must pull out of Donbass for any deal to end the war

While scheduled power outages have long been a part of daily life in Kyiv, the unpredictable and lengthy emergency outages caused by recent attacks have brought endless small challenges that disrupt the rhythms of daily life and zap morale.

Meals are often basic fare cooked on gas camping stoves that smell and are dangerous to use indoors. Everyone keeps a bucket in the bathroom and bottles of water in case they can no longer flush the toilet. 

“Some days are manageable, others are much heavier, but I’m trying to keep going,” says Olga.

She and Daria are grateful that their children’s schools have heating and are still open – most have been closed until February. Across the city, streetlights have been dimmed, and roughly half a million residents have left.

‘Russian Roulette’

Those who remain are in survival mode. Sofia’s neighbours have taken to lighting fires and barbecues outside in a bid to stay warm. Many feel “angry, tired and sad,” she says.

Sofia finds the combination of extreme cold and continued nighttime bombings makes it difficult to sleep, and fears she will have to move away from the city. “Which I don’t want. Kyiv is my home. But it simply breaks your will,” she adds. 

Nadia is worried a surprise power cut could leave her trapped inside the lift in her building. “It already happened to me once,” she says. She now walks up stairs to her 12th-floor apartment. 

Among her friends and family in Kyiv, she experienced the longest stretch without any power – for 50 hours straight after Tuesday night’s attacks. In that time, “there have been lots of highs and lows”, she says.

This morning, a high: When she woke up the power was – briefly – back. “There was electricity, there was light, and I could make myself a coffee.” She says, “I was so happy.”

Daria has been cold at her office, where the central heating no longer works, but mostly warm enough at home as she has invested in backup options, including a power station worth thousands of euros that she can link to the electricity supply in her apartment.

It is, she acknowledges, a “very expensive option” – and is still not always enough. 

In the past 24 hours, the power in her building has only been on for 50 minutes, and she has not been able to charge the power station. “It makes me slightly panic”, Daria says.

She hopes that the power will return for a few hours overnight and she will wake up with a full charge in the morning, but there is no guarantee this will happen. If it doesn’t, she faces another day without heat or electricity.

“It’s Russian roulette,” she says.