A thermal power plant that supplies electricity to Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant came under heavy attack Thursday morning, raising concern about the nuclear facility’s ability to keep its reactors safely cooled, the International Atomic Energy Agency said.
The IAEA said it was informed by the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant that the nearby Zaporizhzhya Thermal Power Plant — whose switchyard helps deliver electricity to the nuclear site — was struck in the attack. IAEA inspectors stationed at the plant reported seeing light smoke from the direction of the thermal facility and hearing sounds of military activity. ZTPP staff are currently sheltering, the agency said.
The nuclear plant’s sole remaining external power line remains connected, the IAEA said, but that line has been disconnected multiple times in recent weeks. Each outage has left the plant fully dependent on emergency diesel generators to power the cooling systems for its six reactors.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi called for an immediate halt to the attack, warning of the risk of an extended power loss at the nuclear plant. The agency said such a scenario could threaten the cooling systems needed to prevent a nuclear accident.
The situation is developing.
A global media for the latest news, entertainment, music fashion, and more.
