Ukrainians grapple with power outages as winter approaches
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The decorative candles Yaroslav Vedmid bought more than a year ago were never meant to be lit, but the dried wax that now clings to them attests to how theyve been used almost nightly a consequence of power cuts across Ukraine.
Seated at the dinner table with his wife in a village on the outskirts of the capital, Kyiv, the two cant count the number of times theyve eaten in the dark since Russian attacks triggered the blackouts beginning in early October. Moscow has openly declared its intention to target the countrys energy infrastructure and drive the nation into the cold.
When youre relying on electricity, the worst thing is that you cant plan
Psychologically its very uncomfortable, said Vedmid, a 44-year-old business owner in Bilohorodka. The cuts are getting longer nearly 12 hours of outages a day, he said.
So far, Russia has destroyed about 40% of Ukraines energy infrastructure, affecting 16 regions, according to the Ukrainian government.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-kyiv-europe-power-outages-59e75904f889cb6039827daf73bf4c0d