DONETSK, August 18 (RIA Novosti) – The Donetsk city council urged the residents of the besieged Ukrainian city in the east to store drinking water before the water supply would be cut off for an indefinite period as a result of the ongoing fighting, the council told RIA Novosti.
“Urgent: all Donetsk residents must stock up on water before 9:00 p.m. [18:00 GMT],” a warning on the city council’s website said Sunday.
The local authorities cited the damaged power lines of the main water facility as the reason for the urgent halt in the water supply. The council was then forced to shut off the supply.
It said there was no information regarding when the water supply could be restored, as the fighting prevented community workers from repairing the pumping station.
At least 74 settlements across the Donetsk region are reported to have no electricity. Since Saturday, all railway connection has been cut with the city of Donetsk, with trains stopping 70 kilometers north of the beleaguered city that used to be home to around one million.
In early August, Russia drew international attention to the worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine's east and offered to send a humanitarian aid mission under the auspices of the Red Cross to the troubled regions.
On August 12, 280 trucks carrying about 2,000 tons of humanitarian cargo, with 400 tons of grain, 100 tons of sugar, 62 tons of baby food, 54 tons of medication, 12,000 sleeping bags and 69 mobile electrical generators set out from near Moscow towards conflict areas in war-torn Ukraine.
The convoy arrived at the border with Ukraine on Sunday and has been parked nearby, pending Kiev's and Red Cross's decision on further steps.
