Basic services were restored on Saturday at Kyiv after yet another wave of Russian airstrikes against vital infrastructure, as residents of the Ukrainian capital walked through a fog-shrouded city with a sense of uncertainty around the holiday season.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that a quarter of Kyiv remains without heating, but the metro is working again, and from early morning all residents have water again.

Only about a third of the city was left without power, he said, but emergency shutdowns would still be in place to conserve electricity. “Because the electricity shortage is significant,” Klitschko wrote on Telegram.

Ukrainian officials said on Friday Russia fired more than 70 missiles in one of the most massive attacks since the Russian invasion began on Feb. 24, causing power outages across the country.

“Problems with water supply”

In Ukraine, almost 6 million people managed to restore power supply in a day, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“Repair work continues non-stop after yesterday’s terrorist attack … Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done to stabilize the system,” he said in a video message.

“There are problems with heat supply. There are big problems with water supply,” Zelensky added, noting that Kyiv, as well as Vinnytsia and Lviv further west, faced the greatest difficulties.

Earlier this month, the mayor of Kyiv warned of an “apocalyptic” scenario for the capital if Russian airstrikes on infrastructure continued, though he also said there was no need to evacuate residents just yet.

“We are fighting and doing everything possible to prevent this from happening,” he told Reuters on December 7.

Today, in heavy winter fog, officials reopened a popular footbridge damaged by a previous airstrike and erected a smaller-than-usual Christmas tree in the central square.

In the vast space in front of the centennial Hagia Sophia, a huge evergreen tree is traditionally erected at Christmas. But this year, officials chose a 40-foot artificial tree with energy-saving lights powered by a generator.

Orthodox Christians make up the majority of Ukraine’s 43 million inhabitants.

Klitschko said the tree was funded by donors and businesses and there would be no public celebrations.

“I doubt it will be a real holiday,” said Kiev resident Irena Solotchuk, who arrived with her daughter to look at the tree a few hours after another air raid sirens sounded across the country.

“But we must understand that we are all together, that we must help each other,” she added.

^{Source: APE-MEB, Reuters}