Name: Ukraine declares state of emergency as Russia bombs millions into cold, darkness and water shortages
Uploaded: 2026-01-16T17:25:40.000Z
Duration: 10 min 26 s
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To Ukraine now, where intensified Russian attacks on the country's energy infrastructure have plunged millions into darkness, cold and water shortages.

Basic passive voice

On Wednesday, a state of emergency was declared for the entire energy sector.

With temperatures below minus 10 degrees Celsius, continued strikes and no rapid recovery in sight.

The worst energy crisis since the war began is pushing parts of the population to the brink.

These pipes take hot water to the heating systems of Kyiv.

No electricity means pumps stop, leaving water to cool.

And during the blackouts, the water temperature in these pipes changes, which makes the metal more corrosive, which can lead to the pipes breaking.

Workers here are out in the cold 24, 7, trying to repair the damage.

They understand everything themselves, and

they're ready to restore things as quickly as possible so that people get their heat back.

But they're fighting a losing battle to keep the heat on.

Many of the capital city's 3.5 million people are stuck in the cold, and

It's especially difficult for the most vulnerable.

A nursing home here in the capital lost power and heating after the large attack on January 8th.

Best efforts could only fix it in places.

They're using a mobile heating unit to warm up the remaining buildings.

Mayor Vitaly Klitschko has come to inspect the site.

The city deployed more than 70 like this for community and care centers.

Given the overall situation in the capital, we have an enormous lack of electricity.

More than 500 buildings are without heating right now.

We're fighting and giving it our all to restore heating, to restore services to people.

Earlier this winter, Mayor Klitschko suggested that people who could should leave Kyiv for a while.

President Zelensky criticized him for the comment, saying he hadn't prepared properly for the cold.

Meanwhile, during this crisis, the national government went weeks without an energy minister.

A crisis becomes a stage for political differences.

The Russians are putting pressure on Ukrainian politicians and people.

But by using the winter as a weapon, hitting the same energy infrastructure again and again, the dark shows up the depth of the crisis.

The Darnitsky district is one of the worst affected by the blackouts.

This is what they call a resilience point.

Run by the city, it offers an opportunity to warm up and use electricity.

Anastasia came here with her 20 month old daughter Stefania, who has bronchitis.

They Switched it on at around 2 in the morning and turned it off sometime around 4.

Her daughter seems to take it relatively well.

How am I supposed to explain to her where we are, these conditions?

Maria just collected her children, Aliyah and Mohammed, from daycare.

She worries they've already forgotten what a normal life is like.

It's constantly dark and we have to walk with flashlights.

Sometimes there's no hot water, sometimes you can't make tea.

Once we walk the equivalent of 30 floors up and back.

Ukrainian authorities have counted more than 250 cases of Russian attacks on energy and heating infrastructure since last October.

We can talk about what is happening in Ukraine with Jamie Waugh, who is deputy head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Kiev.

Tell us, first of all, how people are coping without power and heating when the outside temperatures are as low as -10 or 15 degrees centigrade.

We've been experiencing no power now, on and off for a number of months, but

no heating is becoming very, very unbearable for.

Especially during the nights when the temperature drops to minus 20 degrees.

I'm sitting in an office now with no heating, no electricity.

However, it is more difficult than it's ever been before, especially since the escalation of this conflict.

I can see that you are wearing what looks like a very warm jacket to keep you warm.

Tell us a little bit about what people do in a sort of practical way to.

To, you know, cope in situations like this.

I mean, is our people helping each other more than usual?

Most of us have been able to adapt in the homes.

We have other energy sources, battery packs that allow us to have some sort of energy for a period of time.

These are not usually enough to heat apartments, so we do need to find other solutions.

There are heating points and stabilization points across the city for apartment complexes that have been affected.

Our teams on the ground are working closely with the State Emergency Service of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Red Cross Society have been in these heating points.

They've Been working hand in hand with them, giving out hot meals, giving hot drinks, providing psychosocial support for those that are finding this exceptionally difficult during this time.

But yes, the situation is quite critical now.

Now we know of course that Russia's attacks have been relentless.

So the efforts that organizations such as yours are making to help people in Ukraine, I mean, are those efforts in vain if these attacks on the energy infrastructure are just going to keep continuing?

Even yesterday there were five air alerts in Ukraine.

So they go through the day, they go through the night.

And the teams that are working on the grounds to try to repair the situation, it is very difficult for them.

They don't stop their work when there's air alerts.

As we, as civilians, we're trying to go down to the shelters, but it is very difficult.

Our daily lives are very much affected by this.

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Ukraine declares state of emergency as Russia bombs millions into cold, darkness and water shortages

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