Cold war. Kyiv residents are enduring days without power as Russian attacks and freezing winter temperatures put their lives at risk

High rises in the dark amid power cuts and sub-zero temperatures after Russian strikes on civilian infrastructure, Kyiv, Ukraine, 19 January 2026. Photo: Vladyslav Sodel / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA<br> — High rises in the dark amid power cuts and sub-zero temperatures after Russian strikes on civilian infrastructure, Kyiv, Ukraine, 19 January 2026. Photo: Vladyslav Sodel / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA

Residents of the Ukrainian capital are struggling to cope without basic utilities including heating and power, the knock-on effects of relentless Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, as temperatures drop to an unseasonably cold -18C and lower.

Over a million people in Kyiv have been left without electricity, while thousands of apartment buildings have no heating. The authorities have been setting up heated marquees known as “points of invincibility” all over the city in their attempts to save lives during the harshest winter of the war so far. In these “heat islands”, people can warm themselves up and — crucially — recharge their devices.

In his Tuesday evening address to the nation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the situation in Kyiv as the hardest in the country, with over 1 million people being forced to spend days without electricity and over 4,000 apartment buildings left with no heating.

Around 3,000 apartment blocks remained without heating as of Thursday morning, Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said, having estimated that some 600,000 people had left the Ukrainian capital since the start of January alone and warning that continuing Russian airstrikes on the city were driving it towards a “humanitarian catastrophe”.

A large screen shows a temperature of -19°C in central Kyiv, Ukraine, 15 January 2026. Photo: Sergey Gapon / AFP / Scanpix / LETA

Locals with torches pass heated tents in the courtyard of a residential building amid power cuts, Kyiv, Ukraine, 19 January 2026. Photo: Sergey Gapon / AFP / Scanpix / LETA<br> — Locals with torches pass heated tents in the courtyard of a residential building amid power cuts, Kyiv, Ukraine, 19 January 2026. Photo: Sergey Gapon / AFP / Scanpix / LETA

Locals relax in a tent during a power cut, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Alina Smutko / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA<br> — Locals relax in a tent during a power cut, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Alina Smutko / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA

A charity worker from World Central Kitchen distributes hot food in a residential area amid cuts to power and heating, Kyiv, Ukraine, 17 January 2026. Photo: María Senovilla / EPA

Locals in the Poznyaky district, on the left bank of the Dnipro, grill food in their courtyard under floodlights during a prolonged power and heating cut, Kyiv, Ukraine, 18 January 2026. Photo: Danylo Antonyuk / Ukrinform / Sipa / Scanpix / LETA

People with torches find their way through the dark during a power cut, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Maxym Marusenko / EPA

Locals seek shelter at a metro station during a Russian attack, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Alina Smutko / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA<br> — Locals seek shelter at a metro station during a Russian attack, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Alina Smutko / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA

A generator powers a restaurant during a blackout in central Kyiv, Ukraine, 18 January 2026. Photo: Sergey Supinsky / AFP / Scanpix / LETA

Cars move along an unlit road during a power cut, Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Roman Pilipey / AFP / Scanpix / LETA

People find their way through the dark in central Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Maxym Marusenko / EPA<strong><br></strong> — People find their way through the dark in central Kyiv, Ukraine, 20 January 2026. Photo: Maxym Marusenko / EPA

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