In a recent update from Ukraine, the UN’s top aid official there, Assistant Secretary-General Matthias Schmale, reported that half of Kherson city’s population, over 30,000 residents, have been without electricity for several days.
He stated that Kherson isn’t the only city facing power outages while on a mission in southern Ukraine:
“The big challenge is how to support people if electricity is cut off for several days, or more than a week, as is currently the case in Odesa,” he mentioned to UN News on Wednesday.
Sustained damage
“The authorities are fairly confident that they can manage a few hours or even days without power, but more than a week presents significant challenges,” Schmale explained.
One proposed solution to the energy crisis is to ensure schools and health centers have generators and fuel so people can gather there if necessary during prolonged outages.
Schmale visited Kherson on Wednesday, located directly across the Dnipro River from Russian-occupied territory in southern Ukraine.
While there, he met civilians at a UN humanitarian hub seeking aid. A power plant worker expressed fear of being targeted while working.
She mentioned that only five houses on her street are still occupied, and “almost everything has been destroyed.”
“I don’t even think about it. My home, my dogs, my cats. The neighbors left after their houses were hit, leaving their dog for a week, and they’ve been gone for three years now.”
Another woman Schmale met, from Kherson Island district, was living without gas for heat or cooking. Her mother died in the hospital 10 days ago due to a landmine accident. Six months prior, her husband died in a drone attack while using public transportation in Mykolaiv.
A woman from Kherson, living near the so-called red zone, came to the UN humanitarian hub in search of aid. She started crying while recalling the people she lost and feared she may not return home.
‘I prefer to smile rather than cry’
“Kherson used to be a very industrial city, but not anymore,” said another pensioner. In her youth, she worked on building weather instruments for ships.
Schmale complimented her sense of humor amid adversity. “I prefer to smile rather than cry. I’ve already had a lot of time to cry,” she said.
“I just want to go back home and die there,” she added poignantly.
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