Emergency blackouts in Kyiv, as Klitschko announces start of heating season
Kyiv's centralised heating systems will be turned on, starting with social institutions such as schools, hospitals, and kindergartens. The decision was sparked by "extreme conditions" created by constant bombardment, Klitschko said.
Kyiv experienced emergency blackouts on October 16 due to Russian attacks on the city's energy infrastructure, according to Ukraine's largest private energy company, DTEK. Mayor Vitali Klitschko also announced the start of Kyiv's heating season, with the centralised heating system being turned on first for social institutions like schools, hospitals, and kindergartens.
The decision was made due to the extreme conditions created by constant bombardment. However, two districts - Dniprovskyi and Darnytskyi - would not have their centralised heating switched on due to significant damage to a power facility in the area, Klitschko stated.
The emergency blackouts affected over 3 million people in Kyiv, which is comparable in size to Berlin. In addition to Kyiv Oblast, Buchanan, Obukhiv, and Fastiv districts also experienced emergency blackouts. In Western Ukraine, the city of Lutsk faced a power outage due to an enemy drone attack, with utilities operating on backup power sources.
On October 13-14, Russia launched a large-scale ballistic missile attack on Kyiv, destroying a residential neighborhood and targeting multiple energy facilities and critical infrastructure in Kyiv and the Kyiv Oblast. Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi confirmed that all three of Kyiv's combined heat and power stations were attacked.
President Volodymyr Zelensky reported that 600,000 people were left without power as a result of the missile strikes, with Russia deploying 39 ballistic missiles and over 120 strike drones and loitering munitions against Ukraine's energy and critical infrastructure.
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Independent's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
