Six districts in Yakutia are teetering on the brink of freezing as coal runs out at local boiler plants, a crisis compounded by extreme weather.
With temperatures plunging and fuel stocks dwindling, thousands of residents in Russia’s Yakutia are being left without heat, turning the situation into a full-blown emergency.
Serious heating troubles have hit six Yakut districts as coal reserves at district heating plants rapidly run dry, reports the news outlet Important Stories.
According to the regional Housing and Utilities Ministry, fuel shortages have been recorded in the Ust-Aldansky, Churapchinsky, Tattinsky, Megino-Kangalassky, Amginsky and Gorny districts (uluses). Coal reserves there are near critical minimums, and rapid replenishment has so far proven impossible. The crisis is intensifying as air temperatures drop to -42 degrees.
Officials say the core problem is financial: utilities responsible for heat supply have accumulated debts and are unable to pay coal mines and transporters on time, triggering supply disruptions. Local authorities are urging calm and say they expect assistance from Moscow in the form of federal subsidies that would allow utilities to settle arrears and restart coal deliveries.
Residents are flooding social media with complaints about freezing homes and a lack of clear answers from utility services. Heating is reportedly down not only in residential buildings but also at social infrastructure sites, with indoor temperatures falling to 0 degrees. “The problem is that it’s -50 degrees outside, and it’s 0 degrees inside the post office because there’s no firewood for heating,” said a resident of the village of Ust-Mil.
Locals note the heating troubles began long before the current deep freeze. After the first snow in September, the launch of the heating season was postponed several times.
