The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant came under fire from Russia on the night of Thursday to Friday, raising fears of a catastrophe.
The pictures show that the catastrophe in Zaporozhye was really avoided. A video obtained by the New York Times and released this Saturday gives a glimpse of the inside of a nuclear power plant located in southern Ukraine as Russian troops attacked it on the night of Thursday into Friday. A warning in Russian can be heard through one of the institution’s loudspeakers, apparently directed at the soldiers outside.
“Stop firing at the nuclear facility,” the voice said. “Stop firing immediately. You are endangering the security of the entire world. The functioning of the most important part of the Zaporozhye power plant may be disrupted. We can’t restore it.”
The American daily clarifies that this video was sent to them by a source with connections in the local government. The newspaper’s visual investigation team was able to confirm, by analyzing archival videos and photographs of the plant, that it was indeed located in Zaporozhye.
Other plant footage shows that at least one building burned down after a Russian fire during the night. According to a press release from the Ukrainian nuclear regulator, there were ultimately no signs of an increase in radiation levels, and no critical equipment was hit. Words that were immediately confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Never compromise the “physical integrity” of the plant
But a video obtained by a US newspaper shows how critical the situation seemed at the time of the attack on Zaporozhye, Ukraine’s main nuclear power plant and Europe’s largest.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi reminded during a press conference Friday morning that the “physical integrity” of a nuclear facility should never be endangered, “be it a reactor, stored fuel or radioactive waste.”
If the fire had been put out, Russian troops would have taken over the site of the nuclear power plant, according to the agency for the inspection of nuclear sites. She makes sure that employees still manage the operation of the site.
Russia denies shelling the plant and claims Ukrainians themselves caused the fire.