Warden Messages
Warden Message
Natural Gas Cut to Bulgaria
January 8, 2009
The U.S. Embassy would like to make Americans in Bulgaria aware that supplies of Russian gas to Bulgaria were cut off as of early Tuesday morning, January 6. The Bulgarian Council of Ministers met to discuss a response and the Government put in place consumption restrictions for the entire country.
There are reports of heating disruptions in cities throughout Bulgaria, with the effects particularly acute in large cities – with residential buildings experiencing dramatic drops or loss of heating and either lowered hot water pressure or loss of hot water altogether. Many residents are attempting to heat their homes and offices with electrical heaters, placing greater demand on stretched electricity grids and possibly leading to rolling power brownouts.
The U.S. Embassy urges Americans to keep abreast of local news on this issue and be prepared for outages in heat, electricity and hot water. It may be prudent to check on loved ones or contacts living alone who may be more susceptible to loss of heating, such as the elderly and sick. Please contact the Embassy should you have questions and pass this message to other Americans who may not be registered with the Embassy.
Americans living or traveling in Bulgaria are encouraged to register with the U.S. Embassy through the State Department’s travel registration web site at https://travelregistration.state.gov/ibrs/ui/, to obtain updated information on travel and security within Bulgaria.
The U.S. Embassy is located at 16, Kozyak St., Sofia1407; tel.: (+359 2) 937-5100; fax (+359 2) 937-5209; web site: http://bulgaria.usembassy.gov/.