Millions of residents in the southern region of Russia were left without electricity on Tuesday following a power unit malfunction at the Rostov nuclear power plant. The plant, which supplies power to Russia's entire Southern Federal District, experienced a shutdown of one of its four power units due to a turbine generator malfunction, according to state-owned energy group Rosatom.

The power outage resulted in rolling blackouts affecting residents in Russia's Krasnodar Territory, Rostov region, Sevastopol, and Crimea. It is worth noting that Crimea was annexed by President Vladimir Putin from Ukraine in 2014. Power usage in the country had increased by 9 percent in the second week of July, chiefly attributed to the ongoing heatwave, which increased the demand for electricity. Valery Andrianov, an associate professor at Moscow's Financial University, suggested that the increased demand and possible overheating of equipment may have contributed to the power plant malfunction.

Rosatom assured the public that the radiation levels remained within the normal range, and investigations are underway to determine the exact cause of the malfunction. The energy group also reported that two of the plant's power units were operating normally, while another unit had been undergoing scheduled maintenance since June 22.

This incident follows earlier power outages in Russia caused by a barrage of drone attacks from Ukraine. In the regions of Kursk, Belgorod, and Bryansk, 90 percent of the Belgorod region, which shares a border with Ukraine, were left without electricity and water. These attacks on critical infrastructure have become part of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. A Financial Times report from June revealed that Russia had significantly reduced Ukraine's power-generation capacity since invading the country in February 2022.

Simultaneously, seven regions in Ukraine are also experiencing widespread power outages. Grid operator Ukrenergo disclosed that the blackout was due to equipment failure at one of the power facilities. Emergency blackouts were implemented in the regions of Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kirovohrad as a result.

The power disruptions in both Russia and Ukraine have highlighted the vulnerability of their power grids and the impact on civilian populations. Authorities are working to restore power and investigate the causes of these incidents.

Newsweek has reached out to Russia's Foreign Ministry for comments regarding the recent power outage. If you have any tips or questions about the Russia-Ukraine conflict, please reach out to worldnews@newsweek.com.