A fire at the European biggest nuclear plant ignited by Russian shelling has been finally calmed. Ukrainian authorities said on Friday, and Russian forces have taken control of the site.
As per the statement released by the regional military administration, “There was damage caused at the compartment of reactor number 1 at the Zaporizhzhia plant in Enerhodar, but it does not affect the safety of the power unit.”
The statement further added that operational personnel are assuring its safety. Whereas, there is no information available at the moment about deaths. Ukrainian officials stated that radiation levels in the area were not dangerous.
The plant’s shelling came as the Russian military attacked on an essential energy-producing Ukrainian city and gained ground in their attempt to cut off the nation from the sea. As the invasion has taken entry into its 2nd week, another round of dialogues between Russia & Ukraine yielded a tentative agreement to organise a safe path to take out citizens and deliver humanitarian aid.
Several nuclear authorities were worried about the damage caused to the power station. The assault, however, led Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to look out for some help from several global leaders, including U.S. President Joe Biden and other several other global leaders. The U.S. Department of Energy has also activated its nuclear incident response team as a precaution.
Earlier, nuclear plant spokesman Andriy Tuz said, “The shells fell directly on the facility and set fire to one of its six reactors. He said that the reactor is under renovation and not operating, but there is nuclear fuel inside.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council in “coming hours” to uplift the issue of Russia’s attack on the nuclear power plant.
In an emotional note in the midnight, Zelenskyy stated that he feared an explosion that would be the end for everyone. The end for Europe. The evacuation of Europe.”