January 09, 2024

A Freezing Winter


A Freezing Winter
Moskva River. Moscow, Russia. Vyacheslav Argenberg, Wikimedia Commons

A series of accidents at facilities in Moscow and surrounding areas have left thousands of Russians without heat. Meanwhile, temperatures outside have plummeted to -20 degrees Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit).

In Moscow, over 20 buildings were left without heat due to a fire. Meanwhile, in Moscow Oblast, an a heating pipeline accident in the Podolsk District left 173 building, housing approximately 21,000 persons, without heat. Burst pipes in entrances led to temperatures inside apartments as low as 13 to 15 degrees Celsius (55 to 59 degrees Fahrenheit). According to Mash, at a Podolsk hospital patients had to be warmed with special heat guns.

Several other cities in the Moscow Oblast, including Khimki, Balashikha, Solnechnogorsk, Lyubertsy, and Elektrostal, also experienced heating failures due to utilities accidents.

Solnechnogorsk faced heating and electricity problems as early as October of last year. In the Vystrel District, many apartments recorded temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit), leading to mold formation on walls. In December, residents made an appeal to President Vladimir Putin, with one resident saying via video message, "We will soon freeze from the cold like during the Siege of Leningrad."

Heating issues have occurred in other parts of Russia as well. In mid-December, residents of Samara, a major city on the Volga, reported freezing temperatures in some buildings. Similarly, residents of Omsk, one of the largest cities in Siberia, and Chita, the capital of the Zabaykalsky Krai, highlighted problems with heating and infrastructure. A particularly severe case occurred in December, in Khakassia, where temperatures as low as -40 degrees Celsius (-40 degrees Fahrenheit), coupled with heating and electricity problems, prompted the declaration of a state of emergency in several villages. Residents of the town of Kalinino sought refuge in the local airport building.

You Might Also Like

A Snowy Protest
  • December 21, 2023

A Snowy Protest

After a week of heavy snow, Voronezh locals painted snowdrifts with calls for the local government to finally remove them.
Occupation Is Expensive
  • December 03, 2023

Occupation Is Expensive

An independent Russian news outlet reported that Russia is worse off economically because of its actions in Ukraine since 2013.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Bears in the Caviar
May 01, 2015

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

The Samovar Murders
November 01, 2019

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.

Fearful Majesty
July 01, 2014

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Survival Russian
February 01, 2009

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955