"A matter of survival": Mayor Klitschko advises Kyiv residents to consider leaving capital

Mayor Vitali Klitschko has said the situation in Kyiv is now a matter of survival amid intensifying Russian attacks and advised residents who have friends or relatives outside the capital to consider temporarily leaving the city.

Source: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko in an interview with AFP, as reported by France 24

Details: Klitschko said Kyiv residents who have friends or family outside the capital should consider moving in with them temporarily.

Quote from Klitschko: "Every day brings new reports of destroyed buildings, of people injured or tragically killed, as the attacks on our city intensify. Today the issue is survival."

Details: Nonetheless, the mayor stressed that he would not be calling for a full evacuation of Kyiv. He said leaving cities empty and handing them over to Russia is the exact scenario that Putin wants.

The capital is preparing for winter by getting back-up heating systems ready and stockpiling fuel, food and drinking water. However, Klitschko warned that even proper preparation cannot rule out an adverse scenario if air defences are unable to repel the attacks.

Russian strikes are already causing power cuts and disrupting water supplies. The mayor warned that disruptions to the water infrastructure could lead to a large-scale crisis.

Background:

• On the morning of 8 October, emergency power outages were introduced in Kyiv and several districts of Kyiv Oblast on the orders of national energy company Ukrenergo.
• Later, it was reported that the power grid did not have sufficient capacity to transmit electricity due to damage to networks.
• At 17:30 on 8 October, emergency power outages in Kyiv were cancelled and scheduled power cuts were reinstated. Almost immediately, the metro and some public transport services came to a halt.
• Emergency power outages were reinstated in Kyiv due to a Russian attack, roughly one hour and 18 minutes after the return to scheduled outages had been announced.

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