International aid agencies warn that Ukraine faces a deepening humanitarian crisis as freezing temperatures and repeated attacks on energy infrastructure put children at heightened risk of hypothermia. UNICEF says it is racing to restore water and heating services while emergency generator and repair stockpiles run low. The IFRC reports its 2026-27 appeal is only 13% funded, leaving a 262 million Swiss franc shortfall, and agencies are urgently calling for donor support.
Ukrainian Children at Risk of Hypothermia as Power Supplies and Generator Stockpiles Run Low
Yuliia Chumak, who is eight months pregnant, warms her daughter’s hands with her breath, as they get ready to leave for kindergarten during power cuts after critical civil infrastructure was hit by recent Russian missile and drone strikes, in Kyiv, Ukraine, January 14. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
GENEVA, Jan 16 (Reuters) - International aid agencies warned on Friday that children across Ukraine face a growing risk of hypothermia as freezing temperatures coincide with dwindling emergency stocks of power generators and ongoing damage to energy infrastructure from missile and drone attacks.
The U.N. children's agency UNICEF said it is racing to restore water and heating services that have been repeatedly battered as the fourth anniversary of Russia's invasion approaches. Temperatures have plunged to about -18°C (-0.4°F) at night, compounding the humanitarian emergency.
“Children and families are in constant survival mode,” UNICEF Country Representative for Ukraine Munir Mammadzade told reporters in Geneva. He described residents trying to stay safe from strikes on high-rise buildings while improvising ways to keep homes warm; some families have even stuffed soft toys into window frames to block out the cold.
Stockpiles Running Low
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he would declare a state of emergency in the energy sector, while Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal reported fuel reserves sufficient for a little more than 20 days. Kyiv and frontline regions are among the hardest hit: thousands of homes in the capital and in Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Odesa and other frontline towns have been left without electricity or heating for days at a time.
“Without heat, people are at high risk for hypothermia, frostbite and respiratory illnesses,” said Jaime Wah, Deputy Head of Delegation in Kyiv for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Wah added that unpredictable power cuts are disrupting water supplies and healthcare services and are forcing some families to consider leaving the city.
Pre-positioned stocks of sleeping kits, high-capacity generators and repair materials for buildings are being depleted as needs rise and funding remains limited. The IFRC said its funding appeal for Ukraine and impacted countries is only 13% covered for 2026-27, leaving a gap of 262 million Swiss francs (about $327 million).
UNICEF said it is supplying high-capacity generators to maintain heating and water supplies at hospitals and schools but urged donors to provide urgent additional funding to prevent a catastrophic public health crisis as winter deepens.
Editing by Timothy Heritage
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