Since temperatures plunged below minus 18 degrees Celsius in Moscow and minus 50 C in Siberia, more than 50 people have died from weather-related illnesses.
During the cold snap, which started over a week ago, 722 people have been injured, 371 have been hospitalized and 56 have died, RIA-Novosti reported Thursday, citing hypothermia and frostbite as among the most common weather-related illnesses.
The Emergency Situations Ministry issued warnings to residents of 15 regions, including Kamchatka, Novosibirsk, Omsk and Irkutsk, where the cold has also disrupted energy supplies.
Freezing temperatures have affected even typically warm regions. In Makhachkala, the airport was closed due to heavy snowfall, which delayed 3,000 travelers.
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