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Blackouts occurred over most of Ukraine on Monday as a result of Russian missile attacks on the country’s power grid, heightening worries about disruptions this winter and forcing Kyiv to stop electrical exports. According to the State Emergency Service, attacks that resulted in at least 64 injuries and at least 11 civilian deaths briefly cut off electricity in four regions, while supplies were interrupted in numerous more locations. Following the largest attack on the energy infrastructure since the war started in February, authorities in Kyiv ordered residents and businesses to reduce their energy use, and the energy ministry said that electricity exports to the European grid were being suspended.
At gas stations, long lines developed in several places.
“You need to be prepared for the implications of such bombardment, up to rolling blackouts,” he advised the populace.
Later, Lviv in western Ukraine received power returned, but it remained unclear when Ternopil in the west, Sumy in the northeast, and Poltava in the center of the country would also have power entirely restored.
The city of Kyiv requested that individuals and businesses limit their use of electricity between the hours of 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. They also requested that owners of advertising signs turn off their lights during this period.
Grim Winter is Coming
Ukrainian officials had been alerting Russian strikes on vital infrastructure and preparing for a harsh winter even before there was a clear end to the fighting. The attacks on Monday made those worries worse.
According to Ukrainian military intelligence, the primary objectives of the strikes were to damage thermal power facilities and “instill fear among Ukrainians and the European public.”
The severity and scope of the strikes, according to former U.S. general Ben Hodges, suggested that they were organized ahead of the weekend explosion on a bridge connecting Russia and the occupied Crimea, for which President Vladimir Putin said he was seeking retaliation.
The energy infrastructure has been severely damaged by the conflict, and the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine is currently under a “cold shutdown.” Normally, the plant generates around one-fifth of the electricity used in Ukraine.
In order to prepare for delays to the centralized home-heating season that are difficult to predict since so many different things could go wrong, officials have been advising households to stock up on everything from firewood to electric generators.
