Following Russia’s missile strikes targeting critical infrastructure in Ukraine on Tuesday, the power supply in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, according to officials, has been left in a complicated situation.
Kyiv’s mayor Vitalii Klitschko said on Telegram that Kyiv’s power supply network is united with the national power supply system, noting that the high number of Russian attacks in multiple Ukrainian regions that hampered residents’ access to electricity was the reason for massive blackouts.
Klitschko said that although the system has been stabilized now, the situation with energy shortage remains difficult and led to both scheduled and unscheduled and emergency power outages on Wednesday.
The state energy company NPC Ukrenergo warned in a statement Wednesday, a day after Russia fired 85 missiles mostly targeting critical infrastructure, that citizens should prepare for longer power cuts, advising them to stock up on water and charge their devices and power banks in advance so they can stay in touch with their loved ones.
The company also pointed out that repair crews were working around the clock to restore electricity in seven Ukrainian regions still that have areas without power, including the northeastern Kharkiv region, the western Lviv region, and the northeastern Sumy region.
Earlier on Wednesday, Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky said in a video address on his Telegram channel that due to a Russian missile barrage, about ten million Ukrainians in many Ukrainian cities have been left without electricity, with Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, and Lviv Regions affected the most
On top of the power outages that Ukraine is experiencing, Zelensky also noted internet connection and communication issues across the entire country as well as the closure of several nuclear units that have been automatically shut down at two nuclear power plants due to strikes, without providing more details.
The recurring Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure launched on October 10 after Moscow accused Kyiv of targeting Russian sites – including the strategic Crimean Bridge- have destroyed or damaged, according to Ukrainian authorities, up to 40% of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.