Snowstorm in Kamchatka: transport stopped, products are running out

Kamchatka has been hit by the most powerful snowstorm in three decades. Entire districts have been covered in snow, with houses swept away to the second floor and above. People are breaking out through windows and jumping into meter-high snowdrifts. After the death of two local residents, the authorities have introduced a state of emergency, and locals are talking about a real “blockade.”

This is reported by Siberia.Reality.

Forecasters recorded more than half of the monthly precipitation in two days. In Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the situation has become critical: snow has reached three stories high in some places, and municipal services are not even able to clear the central highways.

The first victim, 60-year-old Igor Bykov, was returning from work when a huge snowdrift fell on him from the roof. Neighbors called rescuers and medics, but the ambulance could not get there quickly because of the blocked streets. The man died from his injuries.

On the evening of January 15, a 62-year-old man died in another area of Petropavlovsk after a similar avalanche. After that, authorities declared a state of emergency and warned of avalanche danger.

Public transport has stopped due to the storm. Authorities have started transporting people in Rosguard motorcades, as buses cannot pass. Ambulances are struggling for hours. Locals say they are carrying the sick themselves in their arms to highways where cars can pass.

Stores are running out of food: bread and milk have disappeared from the shelves, people are sharing leftover food among themselves. Some areas remain without electricity, and residents are hiring private equipment at their own expense to clear roads and allow repairmen to reach emergency lines.

Kamchatka Airport has completely stopped operating until January 17. Dozens of flights to remote settlements and large cities have been canceled or postponed.

In the most affected areas – “9th kilometer”, “Horizont”, “North-East”, “SRV” and “6th kilometer” – people are getting out of their houses through the upper floors, because the first levels are covered with snow. Some residents have had their windows broken, and rescuers have been unable to reach them for hours.

Locals fear that after the cleanup, the real number of victims among the elderly, who were left cut off from help, will become apparent.

As previously reported, after severe frosts and winds, Lanzheron Beach in Odessa turned into an icy shore of the Black Sea. Waves froze on concrete structures and railings, forming a thick layer of ice.

As a reminder, frosty weather will persist in Ukraine from January 17 to 22, caused by Arctic air and a powerful anticyclone from the northeast. At night, the air temperature in some regions will drop to -25 degrees Celsius, and almost no precipitation is expected.

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