From: Maia Mikhaluk in Kyiv (980th day) — It’s been a warm fall this year, with lots of sunshine, beautiful colors, and mild temperatures. Our apartments are heated by central heat, and the heating season usually starts in mid-October. This year, partly because of warmer weather and partly because of the need to save energy, apartments stayed unheated until now. It’s colder indoors than comfortable, but we understand why it has to be that way now, and we accept it.
Next week, though, temperatures outdoors go into single digits, and the central heat will start working (we hope). Unfortunately, subzero temperatures will likely “coincide” with massive missile attacks on our energy infrastructure. The last two months, we have had daily drone attacks, but ruzzians have been saving missiles, probably for winter.
I read today that despite countless attacks on our energy facilities over the past two years if no significant additional damage is done, we should still have power as long as the winter is mild – no colder than -5C. Of course, our winters typically are colder. If temperatures stay around -10-15C, there will be inevitable blackouts, but we should still have some hours of power during the day. However, it’s unlikely that ruzzians will not try to cause further damage, and the extent of that is unpredictable, so lengthy blackouts are probably inevitable.
We are praying for mild winter, for ruzzians drones and missiles to return on the heads of senders, and for the resilience of our people in the face of challenges. We have made some preparations for Light Hubs to function in our churches during extended blackouts. We keep telling ourselves that we are more prepared than in the fall of 2022 when winter blackouts were still new for us. But repeated warnings that this winter will be the hardest yet make us wonder how well we are prepared for it.
Voice of Ukraine 