Using flashlights, they navigate through the darkness to access their own homes. This is how they have to live. millions of Ukrainians by Russian attacks on their territory that have left them without electricity.

“The food doesn’t last, the refrigerators don’t work “And I can’t go down to the street because the elevator doesn’t work,” laments Maria Vedyankina, one of the victims.

And in her case, she fears that the emergency services will not be able to help her because of her disability and because her house is on the fifth floor: “Even if I call the ambulance, they can’t help me because they can’t get me down without a lift.”

The situation is reaching a critical point. As reported by the main electricity supply company in Ukraine, 85% of thermal generation has been destroyed. “Recovering the system would take more than a year and more than two,” they warn.

Cities, meanwhile, live with the hum of generators, as is the case in the capital, Kyiv. Virtually all businesses that do not have one of those generators are closed. And as is the case for Irina and Vladislav, they are forced to open their business to make ends meet.

“We tried. As you can see, it’s empty and it’s difficult to work in this situation because the generator doesn’t work. The problem is that the missile attacks do not stop and during these two years we have seen how the workers take back the facilities and bomb them again, losing everything.“, they warn.

Russian attacks continue at a high pace and are often unpredictable. A situation that has the population desperate and does not let them see the light at the end of the tunnel.