Russia fires rockets at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant

• 2 years ago (2022-08-08)
• David Flin

Europe 1089 Nuclear 659

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Ukraine has claimed that Russian forces fired rockets on 6 August at a spent fuel storage area at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, risking what Energoatom , the country’s nuclear power company, called a “nuclear disaster”. No damage to reactors or fuel containers was reported.

Zaporizhzhia’s dry spent nuclear fuel storage facility holds 174 casks, each containing 24 spent nuclear fuel assemblies.

Saturday’s attack is reported to have damaged three radiation monitoring sensors near the fuel storage facility, impairing the ability to detect a radiation leak should one occur.

Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said that: “The situation posed the very real risk of a nuclear disaster that could threaten public health and the environment in Ukraine and beyond.” He added that he demanded to be allowed to visit the site with a team of nuclear experts.

Ed Lyman, Director of Nuclear Power Safety with the Union of Concerned Scientists , said: “My technical assessment of the potential consequences hasn’t changed from back in March, but it does appear now that the likelihood of some damage that could potentially endanger the reactors and spent fuel storage is increasing, and Russia’s use of the facility as a shield to deter Ukrainian counterattacks is, of course, an outrage and possibly a war crime.”

The plant, the largest in Europe, is on the Dnieper River, near the front line of fighting. Russian forces hold the plant, on the south side of the river, with Ukrainian forces holding the territory across the river from the plant. Russian forces have based artillery and munitions in the plant grounds, using it as a safe haven from which to shell Ukrainian positions.