Karabash Homes Reconnected After Pipe Bursts in Deep Freeze
Authorities stated that the apartment buildings in Karabash, which were left without heating in the frost due to an accident, have been connected to the heat supply. Currently, utility workers are working inside the buildings, thawing pipes where they have frozen and repairing those that burst. The current situation was described on Friday, January 23, by 74.RU vice-governor Andrei Faleichik.
«All buildings are connected. Heat is being supplied to all buildings,» stressed the deputy governor. «The lower pipe sections, in the basements, are all operational: they haven»t frozen, there are no emergencies, no leaks (local damages or cracks. — Ed.), nothing. Now we«re monitoring the risers. We know which ones are frozen, and they»re being thawed. Where repairs are needed, management companies are doing the work. They might install a temporary bypass to address urgent issues—with plans for replacement later. If a heating radiator is damaged, it will be replaced.«
Since the walls in many apartments have frozen in the -30 degree Celsius (-22°F) frost, it won«t warm up immediately there.
«On average, a house takes up to a day and a half to warm up,» reported Andrei Faleichik. «Given that sub-zero temperatures persist, from a heating engineering perspective, it basically won»t warm up faster, even though the boiler house is now operating normally. Both supply and return are sufficient, there are no losses in the network. But, nevertheless, [it won«t be possible to warm up faster], unfortunately, it»s physics, we can«t escape from it.»
Now volunteers are going around apartments, collecting information on the current situation and recording accidents. This helps coordinate repair teams. The city continues to be assisted by forces from the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MChS), «Karabashmed», and utility workers from Kasli, Kyshtym, and Chebarkul. Meanwhile, those affected by the bursts are being compensated for damages.
«First, we will in any case address the issue of fully, one hundred percent starting up all apartments. In case of any damage, we will then look at who exactly is at fault, but in any case it will be fixed,» assured the vice-governor.
On January 24 and 25, free visits to the bathhouse have been organized for residents. The decision on this was made by the management of «Karabashmed». You only need to register in advance, phone number 8-909-084-49-06.
Recall that residents of Karabash began complaining about the shutdown of heating and hot water on January 20. At that time, two districts—over 30 residential buildings—were left without heat. On the evening of January 21, authorities reported on the elimination of the accident on the heating main, but in fact the problem was not fully resolved. Townspeople described the current situation today: in some buildings, there was still no heat, walls began to freeze and radiators to burst. The Investigative Committee has initiated a criminal case on negligence.
