In Ukraine, Kyiv Prepares for Winter with No Heat, Water, Power
2022-11-13
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1The mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, is warning residents that they must prepare for bad conditions this winter.
2He said if Russia keeps striking the country's energy infrastructure, it could mean having no electricity, water or heat.
3"We are doing everything to avoid this," Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
4He added: "our enemies are doing everything for the city to be without heat, without electricity, without water supply, in general, so we all die."
5Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video speech to the nation Sunday that about 4.5 million people were without electricity.
6Russia has attacked Ukraine's energy centers over the last month, causing power outages and rolling blackouts across the country.
7A rolling blackout is when energy officials turn off power to save electricity.
8Kyiv was having hourly rolling blackouts Sunday in parts of the city and the surrounding area.
9Kyiv is preparing about 1,000 heating points, but it is unclear if that will be enough for a city of 3 million people.
10As Russia increases its attacks on the capital, Ukrainian forces are pushing forward in the south.
11Residents of the Russian-occupied city of Kherson received warning messages on their phones urging them to leave as soon as possible, Ukraine's military said Sunday.
12Russian soldiers warned civilians that Ukraine's army was preparing for a large attack.
13Russian forces are preparing for a Ukrainian offensive to regain the southern city of Kherson.
14In September, Russia illegally annexed Kherson and three other regions.
15Russian forces are also strengthening positions in other areas in the east.
16These actions make conditions for residents and the Ukrainian army difficult.
17Russia's attacks have almost completely destroyed power plants that serve the city of Bakhmut and the nearby town of Soledar, said Pavlo Kyrylenko.
18He is the area's Ukrainian governor. He said attacks late Saturday killed one civilian and wounded three.
19Between Saturday and Sunday, Russia launched four missiles and 19 airstrikes hitting more than 35 villages in nine regions.
20The strikes took place from Chernihiv and Kharkiv in the northeast to Kherson and Mykolaiv in the south, Zelenskyy's office said.
21The strikes killed two people and wounded six.
22In Bakhmut, 15,000 remaining residents were facing attacks every day without water or power, local media reported.
23The city has been under attack for months.
24But fighting worsened after Russian forces experienced losses during Ukrainian offensives in the Kharkiv and Kherson regions.
25The front line is now near Bakhmut.
26Mercenaries from the Wagner Group, a Russian military company, are reported to be leading the fight.
27Yevgeny Prigozhin is the founder of the group.
28In a statement Sunday, he announced the funding and creation of "militia training centers" in Russia's southwest.
29He said locals were best placed to "fight against sabotage" on Russian land.
30The group also said it is opening a military technology center in St. Petersburg.
31In southern Ukraine, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant was reconnected to Ukraine's power system, local media reported Sunday.
32Europe's largest nuclear center needs electricity to maintain its cooling systems.
33But it had been running on emergency power supplies since Russian attacks destroyed its outside connections.
34I'm Dan Novak.
1The mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, is warning residents that they must prepare for bad conditions this winter. He said if Russia keeps striking the country's energy infrastructure, it could mean having no electricity, water or heat. 2"We are doing everything to avoid this," Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. He added: "our enemies are doing everything for the city to be without heat, without electricity, without water supply, in general, so we all die." 3Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video speech to the nation Sunday that about 4.5 million people were without electricity. 4Russia has attacked Ukraine's energy centers over the last month, causing power outages and rolling blackouts across the country. A rolling blackout is when energy officials turn off power to save electricity. Kyiv was having hourly rolling blackouts Sunday in parts of the city and the surrounding area. 5Kyiv is preparing about 1,000 heating points, but it is unclear if that will be enough for a city of 3 million people. 6As Russia increases its attacks on the capital, Ukrainian forces are pushing forward in the south. Residents of the Russian-occupied city of Kherson received warning messages on their phones urging them to leave as soon as possible, Ukraine's military said Sunday. Russian soldiers warned civilians that Ukraine's army was preparing for a large attack. 7Russian forces are preparing for a Ukrainian offensive to regain the southern city of Kherson. In September, Russia illegally annexed Kherson and three other regions. 8Russian forces are also strengthening positions in other areas in the east. These actions make conditions for residents and the Ukrainian army difficult. 9Russia's attacks have almost completely destroyed power plants that serve the city of Bakhmut and the nearby town of Soledar, said Pavlo Kyrylenko. He is the area's Ukrainian governor. He said attacks late Saturday killed one civilian and wounded three. 10Between Saturday and Sunday, Russia launched four missiles and 19 airstrikes hitting more than 35 villages in nine regions. The strikes took place from Chernihiv and Kharkiv in the northeast to Kherson and Mykolaiv in the south, Zelenskyy's office said. The strikes killed two people and wounded six. 11In Bakhmut, 15,000 remaining residents were facing attacks every day without water or power, local media reported. The city has been under attack for months. But fighting worsened after Russian forces experienced losses during Ukrainian offensives in the Kharkiv and Kherson regions. 12The front line is now near Bakhmut. Mercenaries from the Wagner Group, a Russian military company, are reported to be leading the fight. 13Yevgeny Prigozhin is the founder of the group. In a statement Sunday, he announced the funding and creation of "militia training centers" in Russia's southwest. He said locals were best placed to "fight against sabotage" on Russian land. The group also said it is opening a military technology center in St. Petersburg. 14In southern Ukraine, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant was reconnected to Ukraine's power system, local media reported Sunday. Europe's largest nuclear center needs electricity to maintain its cooling systems. But it had been running on emergency power supplies since Russian attacks destroyed its outside connections. 15I'm Dan Novak. 16Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press. 17__________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19resident- n. a person who lives in a particular place 20infrastructure - n. structures needed for a modern society including road, bridges, power centers and similar things 21annex - v. to take control of an area and add it to a country 22region- n. an area that is part of the world or of a country that is set apart for some reason 23mercenary - n. a soldier who works for money not for a country 24sabotage - n. the act of destroying or damaging something on purpose so that it does not work