Tens of thousands of people across Russia are currently living with no heating or hot water following an unprecedented wave of infrastructure failures.

Even large cities like Novosibirsk and Vladivostok, as well as the suburbs of Moscow, have experienced burst hot-water mains, ruptured heating pipelines, and crumbling municipal infrastructure. These incidents have escalated since the beginning of 2024, with temperatures dropping to -30 degrees and below in some parts of the country.

While such failures are not a new phenomenon, considering Russia's frigid winters and aging Soviet-era infrastructure, they are now occurring at a significant political moment, just before a presidential election and amid growing fatigue over the protracted invasion of Ukraine.

As temperatures plummet, the deteriorating state of municipal services, particularly heating, poses a significant political challenge for the authorities. With much of the government's budget redirected towards the war effort, many local authorities have experienced a reduction in funding, limiting their capacity to promptly address any infrastructure issues.

The surge in bursting pipes coincides with Russia's efforts to shield the population from any adverse effects of the war in Ukraine. Until recently, the average Russian had not experienced a significant impact on their life due to the conflict. However, as cash-strapped local governments grapple with the urgent need to address various problems, concerns may arise that residents will perceive the so-called Special Operation as a drain on resources.

The Kremlin itself has admitted that a significant portion of Russia's infrastructure is ageing, but it has attributed the recent outages to unusually cold weather.

Speaking on the subject, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that "everyone did everything that could be done" to address the issue and expressed sympathy for those who had to endure "sitting in the cold without electricity."

"Despite all titanic efforts to upgrade all the housing and utilities systems, a certain part of them remains in a rather dilapidated state,” Peskov said. “These programmes will continue, but it is impossible to renew all pipes and all housing and utilities systems in 10-15 years. Of course, these programmes are time-consuming," he said.

In Podolsk, a city in the Moscow Region, 180 high-rise buildings lost power due to a burst heating main at the Klimovsk Specialised Ammunition Plant. In response, locals took to the streets, demanding the restoration of power and urging accountability for those responsible. In response, the deputy head of Podolsk, Roman Ryazantsev, was arrested. According to investigators, Ryazantsev was warned more than once that the infrastructure was not up to standard. 

In Elektrostal, also in the Moscow Region, residents gathered outside to start fires in order to keep warm, as temperatures inside apartments dropped as low as -18 degrees Celsius. In a video, a group of locals appealed to Governor Andrey Vorobyov, urging him to address and resolve the heating issue.