Mass departure in Kyiv stalls urgent utility repairs, expert says

Kyiv has seen an unprecedented outflow of residents, with between 500,000 and 600,000 people reportedly leaving the city, said Stanislav Ignatiev, an energy expert at the Ukrainian Institute for the Future.

Ignatiev warned that the mass departure is creating significant obstacles for utility workers attempting to conduct emergency repairs, Telegram channel News.LIVE reports.

In several homes where heating systems had previously frozen, the heat carrier—a crucial component of the central heating system—was not properly drained in time. This oversight has left pipes and radiators damaged and in urgent need of replacement.

“The biggest problem, which utility workers told me about yesterday, is that many Kyiv residents have left their homes, and it will be difficult to access those apartments that are locked in order to restore the heating supply,” Ignatiev explained.

By Vafa Guliyeva