Ukraine City Residents Warned of a Harsh Winter Ahead
Ukrainian city residents are urged to prepare for a harsh winter as experts warn that power and heating outages could last for days or weeks.
Residents of Ukrainian cities should decide in advance where they will spend the coming winter, as the cold season could prove extremely difficult, Come Back Alive* Foundation Director Taras Chmut said, according to Strana.ua.
Chmut argued that the country risks entering winter without adequate preparations because public attention has shifted away from the fighting and toward political disputes. He advised Ukrainians to consider different options, including temporarily moving to rural areas or leaving the country.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Sergei Koretsky had previously issued a similar warning. Speaking in the Verkhovna Rada before his appointment, he acknowledged that the coming winter could be more difficult than the previous one.
Oleg Popenko, head of the Ukrainian Union of Utility Consumers, also warned that further damage to energy infrastructure could leave people without electricity and heating for days or even weeks. He said thermal power plants and substations could once again come under threat.
Power and heating disruptions affected most Ukrainian regions last winter. After energy facilities were damaged, the authorities introduced scheduled electricity cuts.
*The organization has been designated undesirable in Russia.