Russian airstrikes have been targeting Ukraine's second city Kharkiv on a daily basis in recent weeks. The city's energy infrastructure is struggling under the strain, with its main power plant hit twice. But the staff are determined to keep the power running in the face of mounting Russian aggression.

Kharkiv

Russian forces have invaded Ukraine from land, air and sea with strikes causing widespread damage. Global leaders have condemned the move and imposed sanctions.

Ukraine Invasion

Russia has intensified its military actions against Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, with daily airstrikes targeting the area. These attacks have particularly focused on the city's critical energy infrastructure, causing significant damage and challenges. Despite the ongoing aggression, the local staff remain committed to ensuring that power remains available to the city's residents.

Kharkiv, located approximately 30 kilometers from the Russian border, has been under constant threat for over a month, with air raid sirens sounding 10 to 15 times daily. Recent strikes have damaged significant facilities, including a television transmitter and the city's main power plant. The latter, identified as power station number five, is crucial as it supplies half of Kharkiv's electricity. A recent attack saw five missiles devastate the plant, destroying vital equipment and infrastructure.

The destruction at the power plant is extensive, with the turbine annihilated and the structure’s roof and walls significantly damaged, rendering the facility inoperable. The machinery, dating back to the Soviet era, now lacks available spare parts for repairs, complicating recovery efforts. However, the staff are working diligently to restore operations, with a focus on transitioning to modern Western technology, despite the challenges and the looming threat of further attacks.

Amid the constant danger, the resilience of the plant's employees stands out. They continue to report for duty, seeking shelter in the station's underground bunker during missile alerts, which have become a routine part of their workday. The strain of this constant threat is evident, highlighting the psychological toll on those at the forefront of maintaining essential services amidst conflict. Additionally, the escalation in Russian military activity has prompted heightened defense measures in Kharkiv, including the construction of barriers and expansion of trench networks around the city.



Russia pounds Ukraine’s Kharkiv

The sirens blare out 10 to 15 times a day in Kharkiv. For more than a month, Ukraine's second city, situated 30 kilometres from the Russian border, has had no peace and has been in Moscow's crosshairs. Targeted this week was the television transmitter. In late March, power station number five was hit, which provides 50% of the city's electricity. Five missiles hit the energy complex. This is the damage, shown to us by the plant's manager. The turbine is destroyed, the roof is gone, the walls too, nothing's working anymore. The machines date from the Soviet era, so Ukrainian technicians have no spare parts. But they're doing the best they can to ensure there will be heating come next winter. We don't want any more Soviet material anyway. We want modern Western machines. The problem is it will take months to repair and there's the risk we'll be targeted again. We've already been hit twice. Another siren, prompting the manager to check updates. A missile has been detected in the skies over Kharkiv. The staff are going to take cover. We have to go. We followed them to the underground shelter in the labyrinthine depths of the power station. For the employees, who have been coming to work despite everything, it's an exhausting routine. The fatigue is etched on their faces. For a few months it was calmer, we were hearing fewer sirens and we managed to forget about it a bit. And now it's started again. It's incredibly stressful. It's a symptom of increasing alarm in this border region. Faced with a rise in Russian strikes, the Ukrainian military has laid a dragon-teeth barrier five kilometres from the border. Further on, the network of trenches gets bigger. On several fronts, Kharkiv is reinforcing its defences.

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Thousands of people been evacuated from border areas in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, as Russia kept up constant strikes on a key town as part of a cross-border offensive, officials said. The surprise Russian attack across Ukraine's northeastern border began on Friday, with Moscow's troops making small advances in an area from where they had been pushed back nearly two years ago.

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Ukraine Invasion