Russia has struck a nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, damaging power plant buildings in an act of ‘nuclear terrorism’, Kyiv’s energy operator said. Kremlin troops hit the Pivdennoukrainsk plant in Mykolaiv region, with a ‘powerful explosion’ taking place just 300 yards away from the reactors, breaking more than 100 windows in the complex.
The attack damaged power plant buildings, a nearby hydroelectric power plant, and transmission lines. Footage shows the site erupting into a huge fireball after the strike, illuminating the night’s sky in a blast of white light.
The three reactors at the Pivdennoukrainsk plant were not damaged and are working normally, Ukraine’s state nuclear company Energoatom said. The Pivdennoukrainsk plant, also known as the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant, sits along the Southern Bug River and is about 190 miles south of the capital, Kyiv.
It is Ukraine’s second-largest nuclear power plant. ‘Currently, all three power units of the PNPP (Pivdennoukrainsk Nuclear Power Plant) are operating normally. Fortunately, there were no casualties among the station staff,’ Energoatom said.
It published two photographs showing a crater it said was caused by the blast. In one of the pictures a man stood in the crater to give a sense of its size. Commenting on the strike on the Telegram messaging app, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said: ‘The invaders wanted to shoot again, but they forgot what a nuclear power plant is. Russia endangers the whole world. We have to stop it before it’s too late.’
There was no immediate Russian reaction to Ukraine’s accusations. The Mykolaiv region has been under constant rocket attack by Russian forces in recent weeks. Another Ukrainian nuclear power plant at Zaporizhzhia – which is Europe’s largest and lies about 155 miles east of the Mykolaiv site – was shut down earlier this month due to Russian shelling, prompting concerns about a possible nuclear disaster.
Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for shelling at the Zaporizhzhia plant, which is held by Russian forces but operated by Ukrainian staff. The shelling has damaged buildings and disrupted power lines.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog said this weekend one of the four main power lines at the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility had been repaired and was once again supplying the plant with electricity from the Ukrainian grid.
Some military analysts have said Russia might stage a nuclear incident at Zaporizhzhia, which is held by Russia but run by Ukrainian staff, in response to Ukraine’s sudden counter-surge which has repelled Putin’s men. (Daily Mail)
