Sub-zero temperatures in Ukraine claim 40 lives: Officials
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko at the European Council building in Brussels, Belgium on August 30, 2014. PHOTO | THIERRY CHARLIER | AFP
What you need to know:
Authorities said most of those who died of exposure were found in the streets, a total of 40 victims since December 30, with 11 of them confirmed dead in the past 24 hours.
Temperatures in the capital Kiev had plunged as low as minus 15 degrees Celsius (5 degrees Fahrenheit) last week.
KIEV, Friday
Sub-zero temperatures across Ukraine have claimed 40 lives since late December, officials said Friday as the death toll from the cold snap hitting Europe keeps rising.
Authorities said most of those who died of exposure were found in the streets, a total of 40 victims since December 30, with 11 of them confirmed dead in the past 24 hours.
Temperatures in the capital Kiev had plunged as low as minus 15 degrees Celsius (5 degrees Fahrenheit) last week.
Doctors said most of the latest fatalities were caused by hypothermia after alcohol consumption that many homeless people drink trying to keep warm.
The toll from the recent frigid weather across Europe rose to 65 on Wednesday, with homeless and migrants particularly hit, and south European countries struggling to cope with the unusual deep freeze.
