Ukraine Has Lost 40% Of Energy System As Kyiv Sees First Snow, Freezing Temps

Ukraine’s largest city and capital of Kyiv, with about 3 million residents, saw half its home and businesses plunged into darkness following Tuesday’s largescale Russian airstrikes which once again targeted energy infrastructure nationwide. Much of the electricity was restored in the capital city Wednesday, while much of it remained off in many other parts of the country.

In a rare occurrence, most of the western city of Lviv had also been plunged into darkness this week, after what authorities called the biggest wave of Russian strikes on power facilities since the invasion began.

“Photos of Kyiv draped in darkness have become a shareable illustration of winter in Ukraine this year: dark, cold, dangerous,” observed The Hill. “Ukraine’s energy infrastructure is under attack from Russia, which has failed to defeat Ukrainian forces on the battlefield and is now once again targeting civilians.”

An estimated 100 missiles had rained down on Ukrainian cities over the span of just a couple hours on Tuesday, chiefly targeting the energy grid. 

President Zelensky had already earlier in November warned that 40% of the country’s energy system has been destroyed. 

One Kyiv resident, Vladimir Yanachuk, was cited in NPR as saying, “We are not afraid about this. Ukrainians are not afraid about this,” while acknowledging: “Winter will be hard. But this winter will be hard not only for Ukrainians, but for Russian soldiers too.”

Temperatures in the capital and other parts of Ukraine have dipped below freezing this week, with the first snow fall of the season dusting Kyiv. 

The AFP reports, “The first snow of the winter falls on Maidan Square in Kyiv, blanketing its statues and anti-tank obstacles as the Ukrainian capital faces blackouts and power outages from a fresh series of Russian strikes targeting the country’s energy infrastructure.”

Sirens and snow in Kyiv this morning pic.twitter.com/0VyHQOTrx2

— Rohit Kachroo (@RohitKachrooITV) November 17, 2022

Meanwhile The New York Times notes the continued emergency that the country’s vital nuclear power plants are facing, given they themselves must rely on the national grid for aspects of their normal operations. 

NetBlocks metrics on the day of Russia’s large-scale strikes this week…

⚠️ Confirmed: #Ukraine is currently experiencing a major internet disruption; live metrics show national connectivity at 67% of previous levels; the incident comes amid reports of one of the most intense Russian missile attacks to date 📉

📰 Background: https://t.co/S0qJQ7CbNv pic.twitter.com/XE4w2o1Uzp

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) November 15, 2022

“Ukraine relies on its three working nuclear power plants — Khmelnytskyi, Rivne and South Ukraine — to generate much of the power used in the country. It is now struggling to keep open these Ukrainian-controlled plants amid Russia’s assault on the energy grid,” The Times reports.