The United Nations atomic watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has issued a warning after a Russian drone detonated near a Ukrainian nuclear power plant.
The drone was detonated around 800 metres from the perimeter of the nuclear power plant in south of Ukraine on Thursday. One of the drones flew as close as 500 meters to the plant. The agency said: “Drones are flying far too close to nuclear power plants, putting nuclear safety at risk”.
Director general of the IAEA, Rafael Gross said in a statement on Friday that observers reported hearing gunfire and explosions around 1 a.m. They later went to the location near Pivdennoukrainsk in the Mykolaiv region, where the drone had crashed, and found a crater approximately 4 square meters in size.
“Nearby metal structures had been hit by shrapnel and the windows of vehicles close to the impact area were shattered. A power line also came down, though it was not connected to the plant … Fortunately, last night’s incident did not result in any damage to the South Ukraine nuclear power plant itself. Next time we may not be so lucky,” Gross said. There have been no reports of casualties.
The IAEA also reported that the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia plant had been without power for over 48 hours after external power lines, which are crucial for delivering electricity to cool the reactor fuel and avoid a meltdown, were cut for the tenth time during the conflict. Emergency diesel generators were being used to maintain operations. Russian military occupied Zaporizhzhia power plant early March, weeks after Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion in February. A Ukrainian counteroffensive in 2023 made limited progress in reclaiming the plant, and movement along the front lines in the area has largely stalled since then.
