A Ukrainian MP does not rule out evacuating Kyiv’s population due to the lack of electricity and empty store shelves

Ukrainian MP Bohdan Kitsak has suggested that, because of the electricity and heating crisis, authorities may have to evacuate Kyiv residents.

The remarks, made during the national telethon, were circulated by political Telegram channels.

According to Kitsak, if heating is cut off for an extended period, freezing temperatures could rupture the heating networks of entire residential districts.

Residents in Kyiv’s Pozniaky neighborhood received a message from DTEK’s chatbot saying that emergency power outages would last until 7:00 a.m. on January 14.

However, both that forecast and other dates may not reflect reality. The day before, the Ministry of Energy said it was currently impossible to predict when electricity supply would return to a normal schedule due to ongoing shelling.

Earlier, a lack of electricity in the capital forced trolleybuses and trams to stop running; city authorities replaced them with buses. Large queues formed at bus stops in the Obolon district.

Kyiv residents are reportedly buying up bottled water amid the blackout and disruptions to water supply, according to local Telegram channels and social media, which have posted footage of empty shelves in grocery aisles.

In Kyiv and the Kyiv region, locals are also stockpiling bread, fearing that shops could close because of power outages.

Previously, some supermarket chains shut part of their stores in the capital due to prolonged blackouts.