Finns worried about the possibility of death from the cold

The people of Finland are at risk of death from the cold if there are no rolling blackouts this winter due to the cessation of supplies from Russia, the Bloomberg news agency reported. Our compatriots who live and work in Finland told us about the situation in the country.

According to network operations managers at the Finnish electricity grid company Fingrid, if planned outages are not carried out in some areas, a large-scale outage could occur. And people can just die from the cold.

The Ministry of Defense of Finland has presented a picture of what will happen when the electricity goes out, when the air temperature drops to minus 20 degrees. In 18 hours the temperature in wooden houses will drop to +10 degrees, in 30 hours the wooden buildings will begin to freeze, there will be a threat of pipe breaks. In 36 hours, the cold will come to multi-apartment concrete buildings, the temperature there will be about +10 degrees, in 4 days pipes will burst in most houses. Residents will need to be evacuated.

“So far, none of my acquaintances and colleagues have encountered rolling power outages,” says our compatriot Sergey, who works in Helsinki at a plant for the production of industrial equipment. – But there is constant talk about increasing electricity bills. In social networks and local newspapers – just a shaft of publications about the significant difficulties in paying for heat in private homes.

Boilers, fuel, firewood have risen in price significantly. At our plant, for example, there are containers where the wood from the packaging is dumped. Previously, they were filled to the top. Now they are almost always empty. Workers in flight dismantle the boards and take them home.

— How much does a cube of firewood cost in Finland?

– Firewood on the Internet is sold for 400 euros with delivery. Judging by the photo of the pallet with stacked bundles, there are about 2 cubes. That is, a cubic meter of dry birch firewood costs about 180-200 euros (11-12.4 thousand rubles). The price jumped almost three times. In winter, I think it will rise even more.

But in Finland, many people prefer to negotiate directly with sawmills and buy production waste from them. They also conclude agreements with services that clean the forest, and they themselves take out old sawn trees.

— What fuel do boilers run by local residents in private homes?

– At least half – on diesel fuel. It used to be cheap and convenient. Some are now equipping boilers with a pellet feeding system. Special capsules are used – composite fuel of high thermal capacity. There is more soot from pellets, you need to charge the stove more often, but it has become cheaper at times.

As for firewood, the Finns used to often buy it from private traders who brought it from Russia. Now the Finns are complaining that even firewood is not allowed to cross the border. And all the stash was sold out in August.

(According to the Finnish Natural Resources Agency, 74% of the wood that was used for industrial needs was imported into the country in 2021 from Russia. Now these deliveries are gone. – Auth.).

— Earth heat pumps, which are called deep heat pumps, have become very popular in Finland. Their work is based on the use of the heat of the earth. At depth, pipes are laid in the form of a coil, through which the refrigerant circulates, absorbing heat from the ground. Due to this, local residents save on heating their homes. Heat pumps have skyrocketed in price right now. Residents have also become more active in installing solar panels. Moreover, they try to save on installation, do not invite representatives of firms and companies, but turn to private traders – “homemade”.

Our other interlocutor, Irina, moved with her family to Finland in the 90s under the repatriation program, when the country decided to help ethical Finns.

“Finland, indeed, is now faced with rising energy prices, inflation is on the way,” says Irina. – The country has imposed sanctions against Moscow, headed for the rejection of Russian fuel. There are certain problems, but no one panics. Some measures have already been taken to save energy, in particular, a decrease in the indoor and indoor temperature by one or two degrees, with the exception of hospitals, children’s institutions and geriatric departments.

The authorities announced that the Christmas lighting of the main street in Helsinki will last from the beginning of the holiday until January 6. Saunas in the pools will not work simultaneously, but alternately. In the apartments, we were not recommended to use washing machines and dishwashers in the evening.

I don’t know what will happen next, but in September, for example, with my family, we paid 49 euros (about 3,000 rubles) for electricity, and in October already 70 (4,300 rubles). True, the sauna was often turned on.