Ukrainians brace for a brutal winter amid Russian attacks on energy grid

Judy Woodruff:

For almost two months, Russia has targeted Ukraine's energy grid in an attempt to sap and freeze the country's morale.

At one point, more than 10 million Ukrainians had no electricity or heat.

Special correspondent Volodymyr Solohub and videographer Pavlo Sukhodolskiy report from Kyiv on the cat-and-mouse game between Russia and the Ukrainian workers who are risking their lives to keep the country running.

Volodymyr Solohub:

They call them the new heroes, Ukrainian electrical workers doing the impossible, keeping the lights on despite relentless Russian attacks on critical infrastructure.

Andriy Medyna is the repair team leader and say, for weeks, his unit has been working almost nonstop.

Andriy Medyna, Repair Team Leader (through translator):

We have been fixing the equipment destroyed as the result of the blackouts and the power spikes, but also as the result of the fighting that was happening around Kyiv.

Volodymyr Solohub:

They face a constant threat. Russia launched hundreds of strikes with Iranian-made drones and Russian missiles. And the crews are in the crossfire. Russian attacks have killed at least four workers of this energy company alone.

Andriy Medyna (through translator):

It is difficult. The staff is scared. When a rocket flies over your head or something explodes nearby, sometimes, people just refuse to work, not because they don't want to, but because their mental health is suffering.

Volodymyr Solohub:

Ukraine officials say more than 500 cities, towns and villages face power problems. Russia has struck nearly every major substation that routes power between regions, and now the country is running out of parts to fix the Soviet era grid.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba recently urged allies to send spare parts quickly.

Dmytro Kuleba, Ukrainian Foreign Minister:

And we need transformers. When we have transformers and generators, we can restore our system, our energy grid, and provide people with decent living conditions, which President Putin is trying to deprive them of.

Volodymyr Solohub:

USAID and the U.S. Embassy have delivered tens of millions of dollars worth of emergency generators. And late last month, the U.S. pledged an additional $53 million for the acquisition of parts, like the transformers that run high-voltage power into home electricity.

The U.S. even purchased body armor for utility workers.

Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State: This assault on the energy infrastructure, this assault against civilians in every corner of the country is not normal and can't be normalized. And there needs to be an understanding of the brutalization of the country that is, quite simply, barbaric.

Volodymyr Solohub:

And it is constant. The workers are there, and the Russian military destroys the infrastructure again.

In a 24 year career, Medyna has never faced such challenges.

Andriy Medyna (through translator):

To have a complete destruction of substations, complete destruction of equipment, I have never seen anything like this before.

Volodymyr Solohub:

According to the most recent estimates by the Ukrainian government, almost 50 percent of country's energy infrastructure has been destroyed by Russian targeted attacks. This means that millions of people all across the country are experiencing daily blackouts.

One such family is Maryna and Oleksandr Moroz and their two kids, 13-year-old Eve and 4-year-old David.

Maryna showed us how they survived blackouts, some of which have lasted days.

Maryna Moroz, Kyiv Resident (through translator):

We have candles. We have power banks for our phones. And while we have natural gas, we are lucky because we can boil water, cook some food for our kids, make some tea or some soup.

Volodymyr Solohub:

But the real challenge is David's inhaler. He needs it for his heart condition, and the inhaler needs electricity. Maryna tries to have him use it between the blackouts.

Maryna and her family brace for winter with the help of hand-knitted slippers, a present from her mother-in-law.

Maryna Moroz (through translator):

Our biggest challenge is the school. Right now, it's online. Whenever there's a blackout, there's no Internet, and it's a problem for both kids and teachers. Classes are often being canceled.

Volodymyr Solohub:

The blackouts are designed to sap the country's morale. And they're a challenge, especially because her husband works from home. But they're not planning to leave.

When I ask why, she switches to English.

Maryna Moroz:

It's very important to stay our family together in Kyiv, really with my sister near and to doctors of David, and to stay home and help our country.

Volodymyr Solohub:

Even despite all the difficulties and all the hardships that this winter is promising?

Maryna Moroz:

I think this winter will be the hardest winter of our lives.

Volodymyr Solohub:

Cardiac surgeons in a hospital without power recently had to save a child's life using headlamps.

Ukrainian resilience is on display at Kyiv heating points. They call them invincibility centers. These are equipped with generators, heating equipment, and some even have a satellite Internet. People come to charge their phones, stay warm, or even keep up their schoolwork.

Aya Moskalenko, Student (through translator):

We come here because, when there's no electricity, we can't do our homework, since we need Internet and power for our devices.

Volodymyr Solohub:

This center is a savior for these freshman students, who say they will keep coming here for as long as they are open.

But Kyiv's mayor admits these aren't enough in case of a long-term blackout for a city of three million facing a long, dark and cold winter.

For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Volodymyr Solohub from Kyiv, Ukraine.