Russian/Nuclear winter?
As if this wasn't bad enough, imagine one of Russia's craky old nuke plants going up?

That's right Vlad, round up the usual suspects. He didn't even know what hit him.
Reuters
Wednesday May 25, 7:32 PM

MOSCOW, May 25 - President Vladimir Putin blamed the management of Russian power monopoly Unified Energy System for a major power outage in Moscow on Wednesday.

"It is entirely possible to talk about a lack of attention on the part of RAO UES to the current activity of the company.

"They should work not only on global problems about company policy and its restructuring, but also pay attention to current activity," the Russian agency Interfax quoted Putin as saying..."

But, you forgot the really usual suspect.

Reuters

Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev said on Friday that his rebels had attacked an electricity substation, triggering Wednesday's major power outage in Moscow, the rebel Web site www.kavkazcenter.com said.

"The result of our special operation exceeded our expectations," Basayev was quoted as saying.

UES chief executive Anatoly Chubais has since been questioned by the public prosecutors office and has been called to give an explanation for the blackout to parliament.

Not a good year for Anatoly:

As Russian electricity boss Anatoly Chubais was chauffeured into work from his country house 40 kilometers west of Moscow on the morning of Mar. 17, would-be assassins awaited him. First they tried to blow up his armored BMW with a roadside bomb. Then they opened fire with Kalashnikovs, spraying Chubais' car and an escorting Jeep containing his bodyguards. A brief firefight ensued, and the failed killers fled into the woods beside the road. No one was hurt."

Russia is a basket case:

Business weekly Sept. 11 2000

The country's infrastructure is falling apart. Gas pipelines spring leaks daily, electricity is regularly cut off across Russia's far-flung regions, most of the nation's roads are pitted with potholes, trains stop running, industrial accidents are rampant, and toxic waste seeps from industrial plants into drinking-water supplies. This chronic malady is not simply about bad Soviet-era technology. It also stems from an 80% decline in investment during the post-Soviet era. Making matters worse, the stewardship of key facilities and funds is in the hands of corrupt and inefficient managers. There are no hard figures on what it would cost to rebuild the infrastructure. But by one estimate, it could cost $100 billion--four times Russia's current annual budget.