Crisis at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant: Fire Erupts, Russia and Ukraine Trade Accusations
A critical situation unfolded at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant as a fire broke out in one of its cooling towers. The incident has led to a flurry of accusations between Russia and Ukraine, each blaming the other for this dangerous event.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that its experts heard multiple explosions on the evening of August 11th, followed by thick, black smoke rising from the northern area of the plant. The IAEA, which has maintained a team of specialists on-site throughout the conflict to monitor nuclear safety, was alerted to a possible drone attack but confirmed that there was no immediate nuclear safety threat.
Security camera footage from the vicinity captured flames at the base of one of the two cooling towers, with heavy smoke billowing into the sky.
Russia’s state nuclear energy corporation, Rosatom, accused Ukrainian forces of launching the drone attack, claiming that two UAVs struck the cooling tower at 8:20 PM and 8:32 PM. Although the fire was extinguished by 11:30 PM, significant internal damage was reported. Experts are set to assess the risk of structural collapse as soon as conditions allow.
Yevgeny Balitsky, the Russian-appointed governor of Zaporizhzhia, stated that the attack occurred as Ukrainian forces attempted to strike the nearby city of Energodar, which is under Russian control. On the other side, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russian forces of intentionally setting the fire at the plant, asserting that “radiation levels remain normal, but the situation will not be normal as long as Russia controls this facility.”
Yevhen Yevtushenko, a Ukrainian official based in the nearby city of Nikopol, suggested that Russian forces might have set fire to tires to create the blaze and smoke, although no concrete evidence was provided.
The Zaporizhzhia plant is Europe’s largest nuclear facility, housing six reactors. It has been under Russian control since the early days of the conflict. Since then, both Moscow and Kyiv have frequently accused each other of shelling the plant, heightening fears of a potential nuclear disaster.
While the reactors are currently shut down, they require power from diesel generators and the external grid to keep the cooling systems operational, preventing overheating that could lead to a core meltdown and the release of radioactive material into the environment.
