1/ A Russian city is literally drowning in human waste due to the failure of its sewage system. It's worn out but hasn't been replaced or repaired due to a lack of funding. It's a vivid illustration of the costs imposed by Russia's money being redirected to the war in Ukraine. ⬇️
2/ Balakhna is an historic city of around 51,000 people, founded in 1474 on the banks of the Volga River about 32 kilometers (20 mi) north of Nizhny Novgorod. However, its underfunded sewage system has collapsed, with the result that "the city is literally flooded with shit". 
3/ Balakhna native Alexander Kartavykh – a Russian warblogger – has been highlighting the city's problems in a series of posts on Telegram. He says that "the pumps aren't working, everything's broken, it's a complete and utter disaster."
4/ The city had problems with sewage in 2024, but things have got much worse due to a combination of corruption and neglect. Now the city's sewage system routinely "bursts and floods both the streets and the basements of houses."
5/ "Last winter was exactly the same, only not as catastrophic, so we somehow survived. This time, the situation is much worse: the city is literally flooded with shit, the networks are almost 100% worn out, and winter is already starting."
6/ "The sewer system is completely non-functional, and deterioration is approaching 100%. Sewage manholes are overflowing, and people are having problems with toilets and sinks. People complain, and the Dom+ community service company comes and removes the plugs in the basements.
7/ "As a result, waste flows directly from apartments into the basements, flooding them. The entire area smells disgusting, and mosquitoes are swarming, with as many in the apartments as in the basements. People are sleeping in special tents; there's no other way."
8/ The situation is so bad that Rospotrebnadzor, the Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare, has warned that there is a risk of epidemics resulting from the tide of effluent affecting the city. There are concerns of a possible cholera outbreak.
9/ Photos and videos published by Kartavykh show the city's Olympic Sports and Recreation Centre – virtually the only sports facility in Balakhna – surrounded by a literal lake of sewage, residential courtyards full of sewage, and sewage-flooded basements nearby.
10/ He blames the crisis on the local utility management company, JSC 'NOKK' (Nizhny Novgorod Regional Communal Company). However, he omits the important context that Russia's regions are facing a financial crisis, as the federal government pours resources into the war effort.
11/ The consequences are, as Kartavykh puts it, that "a city in central Russia is drowning in shit. The breadbasket of Rus', on the banks of the Volga, practically the geographic centre of the European part of the country, [Kuzma] Minin's birthplace, 15 km from Nizhny Novgorod."
12/ He points out that the situation has been ongoing for over a year, but Balakhna is still "Drowned in shit. And the cold is coming, soon everything will freeze and completely fuck up. What a fucking nightmare, poor Russian people." /end
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