UKRAINE, KOZACHA LOPAN, Jan. 23 — The man in the village of Kozacha Lopan froze to death. This is the first confirmed case of death from hypothermia in Kharkiv oblast, Oleksandr Kulik, the press officer of the Derhachi City Council, which has jurisdiction over the village, said to Gwara Media. 

Kozacha Lopan is located in the north of Kharkiv region, 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border. Currently the village is cut off from the gas supply because of the constant air attacks on it, and only two streets in Kozacha Lopan still have electricity. Officially, 489 people remain in the village, though residents told Gwara Media that more than 600 people are still there.

Kulik said that the man, born in 1971, froze to death in his house. Earlier he lived with his neighbour in the summer kitchen, which had heating. His neighbour had been away for some time. Upon returning, he found deсeased man in another house. He immediately reported the incident to the village elder and community police officers, and the body was removed the next day. 

Kulik said that this is the only confirmed case but he believes that there may be more deaths from hypothermia — currently, the village is hard to access because of Russian attacks and unstable cellular connection. 

He added that many men of conscription age remain in the village under these harsh conditions to avoid being drafted in the Ukrainian army. 

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