He The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has warned of an explosion in the vicinity of the Ukrainian atomic plant in Zaporizhzhia (ZNNP) which, although it did not cause damage, increases concerns about the risk of nuclear accident what the fighting in the area entails.
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The team of experts that the organization has deployed in the ZNNP “reported hearing explosions, including near the plant, several days last week“, indicates in a statement the IAEAthe UN nuclear agency.
The experts later confirmed with plant operators that one of the mines located next to the ZNPP cooling pond area exploded on June 11. “The explosion It did not cause material damage or casualties, and the cause was not communicated to the IAEA team. Of the same“adds the note.
For the general director of the organization, Rafael Grossi, “This last explosion, so close to the plant, is a cause for serious concern and aggravates an already fragile situation“. The Argentine diplomat insists in the note on the importance of “are not compromised“nor the security of the facility – which, located in the southeast of Ukraine, is the largest atomic power plant in Europe – nor nuclear security in general in the country invaded by Russia.
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A day before the explosion, IAEA experts inspected one of the electrical substations in the nearby town of Enerhodar to see the impact it had had.an alleged bombing that, according to the ZNPP, occurred on June 8“reports the statement.
“The alleged bombing caused a fire and damage to the substation that serves the building of the Enerhodar town hall, where the main communications hub between the ZNPP and Enerhodar is located“, and where despite what happened there were no cuts, he explains.
The plant Zaporizhzhia has been occupied by Russia since March 2022 and its six reactors are in cold shutdown in order to improve their security. general. Although this measure reduces the risk of accidents, Grossi has repeatedly warned of the fragility of the situation, since the plant continues facing risks in the midst of fighting between Russian troops and the Ukrainian army.
In September 2022, the IAEA sent a team of experts to monitor the situation on the ground and report regularly to the agency’s headquarters in Vienna. Since then, twenty teams of international specialists have rotated on site, thereby “crossing the front lines of the conflict in Ukraine to reach the plant.” The IAEA has been calling for months to establish a security zone around Zaporizhzhia, free of combat, to avoid an accident.
EFE
