600,000 residents flee Ukraine’s capital over destruction of energy infrastructure: Kyiv mayor

Over 600,000 residents fled Kyiv in about two weeks after Russian missile and drone attacks destroyed much of its energy infrastructure, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

Kyiv faces its worst crisis since the opening weeks of Russia’s invasion, with repeated Russian strikes on its energy grid leaving a majority of residents without power. The situation has been made all the worse by a cold spell, sending temperatures down to 0 degrees Fahrenheit. Klitschko told the Times of London that 600,000 residents fled in January alone out of a prewar population of just under 3 million. He urged the rest of the capital’s residents to follow suit.

Birds fly over the city at sunset, with the Motherland Monument in the background, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026.