The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Ukraine: Families in ‘survival mode’ amid Russian strikes and -18°C cold
Families across Ukraine are in “constant survival mode” amid ongoing waves of Russian missile and drone strikes that have left blocks without power for days at a time, while temperatures plunge to a deadly -18°C (-0.4°F), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.
“Families have actually reverted to stuffing even soft toys to their windows to block some of the freezing cold,” said Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine.
The alert follows another night of attacks against power infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia oblast in the south and Kharkiv oblast in the east which have left many residential areas without electricity and heating.
The deadly threat of cold caused by attacks on power infrastructure is becoming a “national-scale emergency…on top of the war”, Mr. Mammadzade told journalists in Geneva during a scheduled briefing.
Pointing to temperatures of -15°C (5°F) in Kyiv on Friday, the UNICEF official warned that next week could be even colder, while millions of families across the country live with no heating. “Children and families are in constant survival mode because of that,” he said.
While the humanitarian focus until now has been on frontline areas, the constant Russian strikes on urban infrastructure including residential areas have highlighted a far more complicated set of needs among people living in apartment blocks.
These include Kyiv resident Svitlana “who is doing what she can to care for her three-year-old daughter, Adina”, on the 10th floor of her building. “She told us that she had no heating or electricity for more than three days, and that was in the first week of disruption - we're already on the second or almost third week - and many families continue to go without,” Mr. Mammadzade said.
Echoing those concerns from Kyiv, Jaime Wah from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) noted that although power has been restored “in a matter of days” following previous attacks on Kharkiv and Odesa, the situation appeared more difficult in the capital, where she rubbed her hands to keep warm while talking via video to journalists in Geneva. “In Kyiv, we’re facing a situation for sustained outages and also higher populations affected because of it,” she said.
Nearly four years since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, “children's lives are still consumed by thoughts of survival and not childhood”, UNICEF’s Mr. Mammadzade warned, noting an 11 per cent increase in verified child casualties during 2025, compared to the previous year.
Ukraine update – UNICEF, IFRC
TRT: 02’54”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 16 JANUARY 2026 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
Speakers:
- Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine
- Jaime Wah, IFRC Deputy Head of Delegation for Ukraine (from Kyiv).
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide, UN Geneva flag alley.
- Wide, UN Geneva Press room, podium speakers, journalists.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine: “Last night actually there was a major attack and I was receiving updates that many residential areas became without electricity and heating as well. So, it is becoming also kind of national scale emergency that yesterday the Government has discussed and probably will declare emergency nationwide emergency in relation to winter, on top of the war situation already.”
- Wide, podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine: “Of course, we’re increasingly worried about right now in Kyiv, it's -15°C, it might go even further down next week and millions of families across the country are again enduring days without heating, as I mentioned, electricity and water supplies. So, children and families are in constant survival mode because of that.”
- Medium, journalist.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine: “Families have actually reverted to stuffing even soft toys to their windows to get – to block - some of the freezing cold.”
- Medium-wide, podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Jaime Wah, IFRC Deputy Head of Delegation for Ukraine (from Kyiv): “The Kharkiv region last night was also hit quite hard. Also, Odessa region around Christmas time there were a couple days where they had no electricity and no heating; but I think in those areas the restoration of those systems took a matter of days for the systems to become at least partially functional. I think in Kyiv, we're facing a situation for sustained outages and also higher populations affected because of it.”
- Medium-wide, podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine: “Nearly four years into this relentless war, children's lives are still consumed by thoughts of survival and not childhood, unfortunately. And then winter threat follows a tragic also 11 per cent increase in verified child casualties during 2025, comparing to the previous year.”
- Medium-wide, podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Munir Mammadzade, UNICEF Country Representative in Ukraine: “For example, on the 10th floor of one such building in Kyiv’s left bank, Svitlana is doing what she can to care for her three-year-old daughter, Adina. So, she told us that she had no heating or electricity for more than three days, and that was in the first week of disruption - we're already on the second or almost third week - and many families continue to go without, as I mentioned or have sporadic access to key services.”
- Medium, journalist.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNIFIL
Ceasefire reduces violence in South Lebanon, but challenges remain as communities face devastation.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Ebola continues to spread in DRC, death toll passes 500 – WHO
The outbreak of the deadly Bundibugyo species of Ebola in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is expanding, while the push to accelerate testing and identify effective treatment options continues, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
2
1
2
Statements , Conferences , Edited News | ITU , ODET , PGA , UN , UNESCO
UN chief António Guterres appealed on Monday for far-reaching, worldwide controls on Artificial Intelligence, as increasingly powerful AI chips that are designed for civilian use shift to the battlefield, where “killer robots” are already the norm.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk addressed the 62nd Human Rights Council during the Interactive Dialogue on Ukraine.
1
1
1
Edited News | WMO
More blistering heatwaves and other weather extremes are increasingly likely across the world now and in coming months linked to strengthening El Niño conditions in the tropical Pacific, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk this morning addressed the 62nd Human Rights Council during the urgent debate on the human rights situation in and around El Obeid, in Sudan.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WHO
Venezuela earthquake aftermath: ‘breakdown of basic services’, disease risks and health workers missing – UN agencies
As search and rescue operations continue in Venezuela thousands of displaced people are struggling to find shelter while infectious diseases threaten to spread, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today addressed the 62 Human Rights Council and made the following remarks on the report on Venezuela.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office on Friday called for action to prevent more deaths in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, as well as for investigations and accountability.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , IOM , paho , UNHCR , OHCHR , IFRC
Aid agencies on Friday highlighted massive needs across Venezuela caused by a double earthquake disaster that has killed at least 235 people so far, with search and rescue for people trapped under the rubble still the top priority.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following remarks at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, on the latest report on sexual violence in the Sudanese conflict.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , IOM , IFRC
Ebola in DRC: first month of outbreak sees record number of cases – UN humanitarians
Ebola has been spreading at unprecedented speed in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), bringing risk and fear into people’s daily lives, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.