The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) alerted on Saturday May 6 to the risk of a “serious nuclear accident” at the Zaporizhia plant, occupied by Russian forces in Ukraine, in the midst of the evacuation of a neighboring town where most of the employees live, and on the situation “potentially dangerous” around the site.
“The situation in the area near the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is becoming increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous”warned the head of the Agency, Rafael Grossi, quoted in an IAEA press release.
The sequel after the ad
Zaporizhia nuclear power plant: “They are all playing with fire”
This plant, the largest in Europe, has been targeted several times by gunfire since the start of the conflict, raising fears of a disaster. The Agency’s experts, who are on site, continue to hear the sound of shelling in the area, the last dating from Friday evening, the statement said.
They are monitoring the situation closely to “detect any potential impact on nuclear safety and security”, said Rafael Grossi. Before adding:
“This large nuclear facility must be protected. I will continue to press for all parties to commit to this vital goal, and the IAEA will continue to do everything in its power to help ensure the nuclear safety and security of the plant. »
Queues and fuel shortages
On Friday, the regional manager installed by Moscow, Evguéni Balitski, announced a partial evacuation of 18 localities under Russian occupation in the Zaporizhia region, in particular in Energodar.
But this raises concerns. Ivan Fedorov, mayor of Melitopol, on Saturday denounced on Telegram a “evacuation” too fast. Huge queues formed at the Chongar checkpoint on the road from Melitopol to Crimea, he said. Ditto in Tokmak, where the queues are getting longer to buy bread, while most gas stations have run out of gas.
The sequel after the ad
These evacuations “temporary” according to Yevgeni Balitsky, primarily concern children with their parents, the elderly and disabled, and hospital patients in the face of the multiplication, according to him, of Ukrainian bombardments in recent days.
“At the front, they suffer in their flesh, we, in our heads”: in Zaporijia, the war so far, so close…
The Russian authorities plan to evacuate about 70,000 people from localities in the Zaporizhia region under their occupation, according to another official of the occupation administration, Andrei Kozenko, quoted by the TASS agency.
No evacuation of plant employees
But an evacuation of the employees of the nuclear power plant, whose six reactors are stopped, is not currently planned, announced Saturday Yuri Tchernichuk, director of the site appointed by the Russian authorities.
Zaporijia’s workforce has gradually decreased since the start of the conflict, details the IAEA press release, and the management of the site is ensured by a sufficient number of employees to ensure the security of the site, according to the Russian authorities.
The sequel after the ad
The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, controlled by the Russian army since March 2022, is located on the banks of the Dnieper River, which in this area separates the two camps.
In mid-April, Rafael Grossi had already warned that we were ” on borrowed time “ about the “safety” of the central. And although the reactors are not operational, an emergency power line on which they depend is still in operation, which constitutes “a major risk” according to the same source.
This line was damaged on March 1 and was still not repaired in mid-April, the IAEA said.
