A critical situation regarding the city's livelihood has developed in Sevastopol. The city is facing massive power outages and an acute fuel shortage, leading to the suspension of operations for some shops, markets, and public transport. Local residents report a sharp rise in food prices and an inability to access basic services.
According to the publication "Agency," citing RBC-Ukraine, logistics chains in the city have effectively come to a halt. Due to the lack of gasoline at gas stations, sellers cannot get to work, and goods deliveries to the city have ceased. Communication is unstable, and residents are forced to commute on foot or by bicycle.
Economic collapse and rising prices
The food situation is causing particular concern. Residents note a rapid increase in food prices. In particular, the price of potatoes in markets has tripled in a week: if a kilogram cost 100 rubles a week ago, by June 25 the price reached 150 rubles. Previously, according to sources, potatoes were sold for 50 rubles.
While some residents note that products are available but "not critically" expensive, others report empty shelves. In particular, shops in the Balaklava district have practically emptied due to panic buying and a lack of new supplies.
Construction materials have also risen sharply in price. The cost of construction mixes has nearly doubled in a month: from 400 rubles per bag at the end of May to more than 700 rubles in early June. However, even at these prices, delivering materials to the city is impossible due to the fuel shortage.
"Living under siege"
Many residents describe the atmosphere in the city as a siege. The lack of power lasts for days, paralyzing the work of half the retail outlets. One source stated: "There has been no power for 24 hours, so half the shops are not working, and neither are the markets. The problem is not just the lack of electricity — due to the lack of gasoline at gas stations, sellers cannot get here".
Some business owners and families are making the decision to leave the city for a few weeks. "We decided to stop our business and go to the country to friends — there is a river and forest, at least there will be fresh water and firewood. That's our unplanned vacation for a few weeks," shared one resident.
Causes and scale of the problem
On June 25, Sevastopol experienced an unscheduled power outage without warning. The so-called governor of the city, Mikhail Razvozhayev, explained this as "overloading of power grids outside the region". However, the problem affects not only the capital of the peninsula. Residents of other settlements in occupied Crimea complain of multi-hour power outages, non-functioning pharmacies, shops, and ATMs.
Satellite images from Planet Labs, taken on June 24, recorded huge concentrations of cars heading towards the Crimean Bridge. The queue of cars was about 10 kilometers long, indicating attempts by people to leave the peninsula or deliver necessary resources there.