Sevastopol Overwhelmed by Waste Crisis and Rat Infestation Under Occupation Rule

(SEVASTOPOL, CRIMEA) – The temporarily occupied city of Sevastopol is recording severe unsanitary conditions and an invasion of rats due to uncollected rubbish, according to the National Resistance Center of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which cited the overloading of infrastructure networks caused by a massive influx of Russians.

Residents of Sevastopol are complaining en masse about overflowing containers, spontaneous landfills, and unsanitary conditions right in the middle of residential neighbourhoods.

According to local residents, the problem has long ceased to be isolated. In some areas of the city, rats openly roam near high rise buildings, and rubbish remains uncollected for weeks.

The inaction of the occupation authorities has led to an increasing number of rats and other pests in the courtyards of residential buildings. Meanwhile, central and residential districts are gradually turning into spontaneous garbage dumps. With the onset of the summer heat, tons of waste begin to decompose in the open air, spreading a persistent stench. The sanitary situation is deteriorating, and health risks for local residents are increasing, the National Resistance Center states.

One of the reasons for the worsening situation is the overloading of the city’s infrastructure. The occupiers continue to bring Russian citizens to the peninsula en masse, while the utility networks and services are not designed for such a population increase, the Center added.

This environmental degradation mirrors conditions elsewhere in occupied territory. In temporarily occupied Luhansk, sewage is being discharged into the Luhanka River, threatening an environmental disaster, leading to water pollution and unsanitary conditions that endanger the lives of tens of thousands of people.