08 January 2024 , 11:18
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Families across Moscow have been left freezing without heating or hot water while Vladimir Putin forks out billions on his war in Ukraine.
Temperatures in the capital have plummeted as low as -30C, where more than 20,000 residents haven’t been able to warm their homes due to the city's old heating network being reportedly unfit to withstand the weather. It means thousands of residents have been recording sub-zero temperatures in their own homes for days.
One married couple and their dog reportedly died from carbon monoxide poisoning as they tried to stay warm in the city of Kolomna, in the Moscow region. Footage circulating on Telegram shows desperate residents burning wood on the streets to keep warm, while windows and doors are covered with layers of ice.
For some residents, the situation was worsened by water mains bursting across multiple buildings in the city. The issue is thought to be connected to rumours of an incident at one of the largest ammunition plants in the town of Klimovsk.
Massive icicles seen coming from balconies as temperatures plummet in RussiaReports suggest that Klimovsk "is heated by one departmental boiler house of the local cartridge plant", which is thought to have broken down. It is understood that government officials were only made aware of the issue from a round of complaints posted on social media by residents.
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A protest on the main square of the town broke out on January 5, as residents complained that the temperature in their apartments had dropped to -10°C. Signs at the protest read: "SOS – We are freezing – Punish the guilty".
Ice covers the Moskva river as cruise boats make its ways on a frosty day in downtown Moscow (AFP via Getty Images)Officials have been unable to say when the heating will be restored. In one video, a protester said: ‘]"Since yesterday they promise nothing. Grandmothers are freezing at home. Children dressed in coats are sick, coughing. The hospitals are cold, everywhere is cold. We need to do something to solve this. Who is responsible is still unclear…we get only excuses."
Another resident complained: "The police arrived quickly to disrupt us. I wish they would bring back the heating as fast as they dispatched the cops [to disperse us]." In Lytkarino, in the Moscow region, people were left to light fires outside in the icy temperatures to try and get warmth due to another power station breaking down.