Restaurateur from Kyiv Oleksandr Kucheruk recycling us in the basement of the restaurant. There is a gas cooker in one corner, a large generator in the other – ready to generate electricity.
– We have learned from last winter. Now we are prepared for the worst, says Kucheruk.
In the largest room on the basement floor, the tables and chairs are already in place. Tablecloths and candles are waiting to be set. Oleksandr Kucheruk plans to move the restaurant to the basement of the building in the winter.
– I want to offer food and shelter to people despite the bombings. Our customers, our staff, their children can come here to the basement – anyone who wants to, he says.
– Although the candles are not for romance, but for light.
Last winter, Russia bombed Ukraine’s energy facilities, cutting off electricity in several cities. In Kiev, you could use electricity for three hours a day. For the rest of the time, people lived in the dark without water and heat.
Now Russia’s attacks on energy targets have started again. Deputy Mayor of Kyiv Petro Panteleev according to the city is preparing for a difficult winter.
– We don’t want to freeze anyone, even though electricity needs to be saved. We have already started heating in health centers, maternity hospitals and schools, i.e. where it is necessary, says Panteleyev.
People buy flashlights, gas appliances, and generators
During the summer, Ukraine was able to repair almost 80 percent of the damage caused to Russian energy plants. According to Pantelejev, a lot has been learned from last winter.
– We started the exercises in mid-October, where we tested water supply, gas supplies, and the operation of hospitals and the police during a complete power outage, he says.
Winter in Ukraine lasts from December to March.
Average temperatures vary from five degrees below zero to plus. However, the temperature can quickly drop to -20 degrees Celsius or below.
In addition, Ukraine has established thousands of so-called “invincibility centers” across the country. There are already almost five hundred such centers ready in Kyiv.
– People can come to them to warm up, charge their phones, work and wash. There are also doctors and psychologists, says Pantelejev.
– We can find ourselves in a situation where there is no electricity for a long time.
Last winter’s insane darkness has also made the people of Kyiv prepare and equip their basements.
Generators, flashlights and various backup power sources are for sale.
Ukraine has also started to produce its own aggregates, which are cheaper than those imported from elsewhere. An aggregate is a machine that produces electricity with the help of power from a gasoline engine or a diesel engine.
Russian Shahed drones a problem
Ukraine has strengthened its air defense for this winter. According to Pantelejev, the experiences of last winter and the air defense systems obtained from Western countries are a great advantage in defense.
However, the problem is the Russian-made Shaded drones.
– I can’t reveal details, but we protect critical targets with various shields and barriers against Shahed aircraft, says Panteleyev.
Ukraine has received $2.3 billion in aid to repair and protect its energy industry.
– For energy plants in Kyiv alone, we get help from our partners for 26 million euros, says Pantelejev.
Finnish herring in the cellar
At Kalaravintola in Kyiv, the war also hinders the supply of raw materials. Ukrainians can no longer fish on their coast in the Black Sea, so you can’t get fish there anymore.
Oleksandr Kucheruk presents his restaurant’s fish showcase and says that he is now getting help from a Finnish fisherman.
– One of the restaurant’s most popular dishes is the Finnish fried herrings, Kucheruk says.
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