‘Enhancing Their Strike Power’ – Workers Hustle to Get Lights Back on After Massive Attack

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday assured Ukrainians that repair workers were scrambling non-stop to restore power grids across the country after weekend Russian airstrikes, described as the most devastating attacks on energy since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2023, knocked out utilities across the country. Approximately 100,000 households in the Kharkiv region alone have been left in the dark after Russian air strikes that lasted into Saturday. Power cuts scheduled by Ukrenergo will remain in effect until Monday at least, the state grid operator said. “Repair crews are working almost around the clock in most regions,” Zelensky said in his evening address. “Restoration efforts are ongoing, and although the situation is difficult, thousands of people are involved in stabilizing the system and repairing the damage,” he said. Of the 458 drones and 45 missiles launched by Russia on Saturday morning and Friday night, Ukraine’s air force said it downed 406 drones and nine missiles. Homes in the northeastern and central regions of Ukraine were the most drastically affected. Around 100,000 clients were without electricity, water and heating in the Kharkiv region, Restoration Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said. In the Poltava region, power was mostly restored on Sunday but damaged equipment left parts of its main city still in the dark, local authorities said. Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk said the wave of attacks, which killed four people, marked “one of the most difficult nights” for Ukrainian energy since the Russian invasion began in February 2022. Deputy Energy Minister Artem Nekrasov said that Moscow has switched tactics, striking simultaneously generation facilities as well as power transmission and distribution systems, he said. “This complicates the prompt restoration of normal power supply and the normal operation of the energy system,” he said. Zelensky warned that Moscow ‘s forces were “enhancing their strike power by using more ballistic missiles.” Kyiv’s response While Moscow repeats that the intended targets in Ukraine are part of its “military industrial base”, Kyiv has focused its attacks within Russia on oil and energy facilities. Ukrainian strikes on energy infrastructure have left more than 20,000 people without power in several Russian border regions, AFP reported. Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said the “electricity and heating supply network has suffered severe damage” in the regional capital of the same name. “Several streets are affected by power issues... More than 20,000 residents are without electricity,” he posted on Telegram. In the Kursk region, “a fire broke out at one of the power plants in the village of Korenevo”, cutting power to 10 localities, Governor Alexander Khinshtein said on Telegram. A fire also broke out at a heating facility in the southern Voronezh region, according to Governor Alexander Gusev.