738 killed in Ukraine cold spell
A bitter cold snap has killed 738 people in Ukraine in the last three weeks, the Health Ministry said today.
The deaths occurred between January 16 and February 5, a period which saw temperatures plunge to record-breaking lows, the ministry said in a statement.
The majority of those who died were homeless and intoxicated people, the ministry said, and some 7,522 people needed hospital treatment across this ex-Soviet nation of 47 million.
At the end of January, temperatures began to rise to more normal winter levels. But the cold wave returned to Ukraine yesterday.
Forecasts said the low temperatures were expected to last only for several days.
The cold has severely strained Ukraine’s crumbling infrastructure, and temporarily caused electricity and gas use to surge to record levels.
