North Korea has been struggling with severe winter attacks since the beginning of January. Crushing frosts, reaching up to -31 degrees Celsius at night, cause damage and failures of basic infrastructure. As Daily NK writes, water pipes, among others, in the city of Samjiyon (in the north-eastern part of the country, right next to the border with China) burst, causing long-term interruptions in water supplies.
However, the authorities not only failed to repair the damaged pipes, but also failed to accurately determine the scale of the failure. As a result, huge queues of residents form in nearby retention reservoirs, pump stations and wells trying to get water. People stand until late at night, waiting for their turn. The waiting list is dominated by teenagers and people aged 60-70.
— Embittered people say: “Stop constantly organizing party congresses and meetings, finally fix the pipes. We are not interested in grand visions of the future. We want to have drinking water and a warm room,” said an anonymous source to Daily NK.
- The terrible situation in North Korea. “They are barely surviving from day to day.”
As Daily NK writes, wealthier residents and local officials do not feel the effects of the crisis. They hire people to carry water or pay for deliveries from tankers, which increases the sense of injustice.
