Ukraine warns of critical situation at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant
President Zelensky says Russian shelling is preventing the restoration of power needed to cool the reactors and prevent a meltdown
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday the situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station had become critical, with Russian shelling preventing the restoration of a power line needed to cool the reactors and prevent a meltdown.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, said it was working with both sides to restore the external power line. Rafael Grossi said there was no immediate danger as long as diesel generators remained in operation, providing emergency power for the facility.
Zelensky, speaking in his nightly video address, said one of the diesel generators providing emergency power was no longer working, seven days after external power lines went down.
“This is the seventh day. There has never before been such an emergency situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant. The situation is critical. Russian shelling has cut the plant off from the electricity network,” Zelensky said.
The Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe’s largest with six reactors, was seized by Russian troops in the first weeks of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and each side regularly accuses the other of attacks that endanger nuclear safety.
It produces no electricity at the moment, but needs power to ensure fuel in the reactors remains cool and no meltdown occurs. It was the 10th occasion since the start of the conflict that the plant has been disconnected from the power grid.
