27-11-2023 (MOSCOW) A powerful storm with hurricane-force winds and heavy rains has plunged nearly two million people in Russia and occupied Ukraine into darkness as electricity lines were severed, and widespread flooding ensued on Monday.
Video footage from social media captured massive waves crashing over beachside areas along Russia’s Black Sea coast, with wind speeds exceeding 140 kilometers per hour (about 90 miles) in some locations.
The storm claimed at least four lives, according to local media reports. Two individuals were found dead in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, and a sailor lost his life in the Kerch Strait between Crimea and Russia. On the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula, a man was tragically killed while observing the waves, as confirmed by Oleg Kryuchkov, an adviser to the region’s Russian-installed governor, Sergei Aksyonov.
Russia’s energy ministry disclosed that approximately 1.9 million people were affected by power outages in the southern Russian regions of Dagestan, Krasnodar, and Rostov, as well as the occupied Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea.
In Crimea, which bore the brunt of the storm, Aksyonov expressed hope that rescue workers could restore electricity within the next two days. Vladimir Konstantinov, a Crimean lawmaker, likened the situation to an “armageddon,” describing unprecedented wind and wave conditions that even the region’s older residents couldn’t recall.
The impact of the storm extended to transportation, with sections of Crimea’s coastal highway closed due to flooding, and ferry services suspended in Sevastopol. In Sevastopol’s aquarium, around 500 marine animals lost their lives as one of its floors flooded, according to the city’s Moscow-installed governor.
Rail tracks along Russia’s Black Sea coast collapsed into the sea, disrupting train traffic, and oil loading at the port of Novorossiysk was halted. On the Ukrainian mainland, over 2,000 towns and villages were left without power due to heavy snowfall, reaching up to 25 centimeters (10 inches).
Kyiv reported severe weather conditions impacting transport, with Odesa, a city repeatedly targeted by Russian strikes, facing snow-related challenges. In response, authorities assisted 1,624 people stranded due to the snow, as temperatures dropped below freezing, accompanied by gusts of up to 72 kilometers per hour (44 miles).
Ukraine’s energy grid, targeted systematically by Russian forces since the start of Moscow’s assault last year, faces heightened threats, with officials warning of potential intensified strikes during the winter months.
