Russia's invasion of Ukraine : New attacks on the nuclear power plant

 

 

After the UN nuclear alert: New attacks on the nuclear power plant 

 

Of: 

 

Emmanuel Silva 

 

Published: Today 00.26 

 

Updated: Today 05.58 

 

NEWS 

 

There is still concern at Europe's largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhzhya. 

 

The UN has come out and warned that the rocket attacks at the facility increase the risk of a nuclear disaster. 

 

On Sunday, Ukraine accused Russian forces of launching another attack on the power plant. 

 

It is the second time in as many days that robots have targeted the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. 

 

On Sunday, Ukraine accused Russian forces of firing at the facility on Saturday night, CNN reports. At the same time, Russia believes that Ukraine is behind the attack. 

 

The accusations come just days after UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi warned that the fighting at Zaporizhzhya risks leading to a "nuclear disaster". 

 

"Miracles don't last forever" 

 

The rockets fired on Saturday evening hit a storage facility where 174 containers of spent nuclear fuel are stored, according to Energoatom, Ukraine's state nuclear company. 

 

According to Energoatom, several windows were broken during Saturday's explosions and one person suffered shrapnel injuries. Three radiation detectors are also said to have been damaged in the attack, which has worsened the possibilities of detecting leaks. 

 

“A nuclear disaster was miraculously avoided this time. But miracles don't last forever," says Energoatom in a statement.

 

Russian forces are said to be using the nuclear power plant as a fort and firing rockets from there. Photo: Alexander Zemlianichenko / AP 

 

UN: Security is compromised 

 

Already on Friday, there were reports that parts of the nuclear power plant were seriously damaged in an attack. 

 

One of the reactors is said to have stopped working after a high voltage line was damaged. The Ukrainian authority then stated that the risk of leakage of hydrogen and radioactive substances was high. No radioactive leak has been detected. 

 

The UN's head of nuclear power, Rafael Grossi, demands that experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, be allowed to visit the plant to protect and evaluate the risks at the nuclear power plant. 

 

- Military measures that endanger the safety of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant are completely unacceptable and must be avoided at all costs, says Rafael Grossi. 

 

 

Zaporizhzhya is Europe's largest nuclear power plant. Photo: Planet Labs PBC/AP 

 

Details: The facility is used as a fort 

 

Russia has controlled Zaporizhzhya since the beginning of the war, but Ukrainian officials continue to operate the facility. According to the New York Times, Russia uses the facility as a fort and fires rockets from there. 

 

Andrei Yusov is a representative of the military intelligence service in Ukraine. 

 

He states that Russia is shelling the area to destroy infrastructure and damage the lines that supply electricity to Ukraine's national power grid. This is to cause a widespread power outage in southern Ukraine. The New York Times emphasizes that it has not verified the information. 

 

 

Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the rocket attacks. Photo: AP 

 

"Nuclear catastrophe unlikely" 

 

The attacks at Zaporizhzhya have created great international concern about a nuclear disaster. 

 

But Tomas Jelinek, inspector at the Radiation Safety Authority, tells SVT that such a disaster is unlikely. 

 

- The most likely is a production stop without radioactive consequences, he says. 

 

Jelenik believes that the most likely thing is that the nuclear power plant will eventually become unusable as a result of the Ukraine war. But this without necessarily leading to a major breakdown.