Two stationary Railways carriages with running diesel engines stand at a suburban Kyiv station under steady snowfall, serving as “Invincibility Trains” for dozens lacking electricity, water and heating. These morale-boosting facilities offer warmth, charging points and comfort during intensified Russian winter attacks targeting power stations and infrastructure.
Mother Alina watches infant son Taras play with charity toys inside one carriage. Living on the 17th floor without elevator, power or water, she calls it a safe haven where her daughter meets friends. Kyiv temperatures hit -19C with wind chill; Alina’s husband works long factory shifts. Emotion overcomes her recounting 54-year-old father’s death near Bakhmut two years ago.
Desperate energy crisis
President Zelensky accuses Russia of exploiting bitter winter against energy facilities. Mayor Vitali Klitschko controversially urged residents to leave, easing grid pressure – a suggestion Moscow hails as defeatist.
Yulia Mykhailiuk, Ihor Honcharuk and baby Markiian heat building bricks on gas stove in Soviet-era east bank flat after August strike damaged original home.
Power lasted four minutes today; batteries drain instantly without heating capability. Multiple baby clothing layers provide sole warmth. Weekend move to parents’ home follows Klitschko’s call independently. Nearby drone strike devastated courtyard apartments.
Widespread blackouts worsen
Kyiv is enduring its worst electrical outage on record, Mayor Vitali Klitschko says, after Monday’s strikes left much of the city without power. By Tuesday, more than 500 buildings were still without electricity.
Olena Pavlenko, president of the DiXi Group, tells the Kyiv Independent that repairs in icy conditions take two to four times longer than in previous winters. Around-the-clock crews from both private companies and municipal services are working tirelessly to fix damage from direct hits and collateral impacts.
On the city’s east bank, workers are racing to restore power to tower blocks, digging in frozen ground with heavy equipment and, at times, working with their bare hands. Andrii Sobko of DTEK Grids says emergency operations are pushing equipment to its limits just to maintain basic lighting.
Authorities are urging residents to cut back on high-energy appliance use, warning that surges after restoration can trigger cascading failures. Despite the bitter cold and stretched resources, repair teams continue working through the night to bring electricity back to the city.
Children’s war toll
Eleven-year-old Stanislav went to the train station in search of warmth and a place to charge his phone after enduring a 36-hour blackout. He vividly remembers the opening moments of the war, when “bright orbs” lit up the sky as explosions fell. Now, drones haunt his nights. “When I hear something flying, it’s scary,” he says. “Will it explode now, or will it keep going?” Sitting on a top bunk in the station, he reflects quietly on a childhood that seems far away. “Life is difficult,” he says.
Nearby, an elderly woman downplays her own hardship, saying it is nothing compared to what soldiers at the front are enduring. Her words are interrupted by the sudden wail of an air raid siren. A train conductor calmly directs the gathered passengers toward a shelter, and after the alert passes, most drift back to homes that are still cold and without power.
Among them are Alina and Stas, who say they will return to the “Invincibility Trains” again the next day if the outages continue in Kyiv. Around them, exhaustion is matched by a quiet determination. Despite the relentless grind of the war, people carry on with stoic resolve.
Winter endurance tested
Extraordinarily cold season persists mere months before easing energy crisis. Universal dread centres on absent war resolution despite late-2025 optimism, ensuring continued casualties amid resilient daily survival.
Source: BBC
Also read: Russia launches drone attack – Ukraine downs 240 drones
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