“Of the three backup lines between the ZNPP and the thermal power plant, one has been damaged by shelling, while the other two have been disconnected, senior Ukrainian staff informed the IAEA experts who have been present at the plant since last week,” the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in a statement. There was no immediate impact on the operation of the plant, which had been disconnected from the electricity grid since Tuesday when another backup line was shut down to extinguish a fire, the IAEA said. WATCHES | Something ‘very catastrophic’ could happen without a seat belt: IAEA:
Ukraine’s nuclear plant needs buffer zone to prevent disaster, UN agency says
The UN atomic watchdog has urged Russia and Ukraine to create a nuclear safety and protection zone around the Zaporizhzhia power plant to prevent a Chernobyl-level disaster after inspectors found that the bombing had destroyed six different areas of the factory – some near reactor buildings. The plant now relied on its single operating reactor to power its cooling and other safety functions. It also had emergency diesel generators if needed, but the UN agency had concerns about the risk of them failing. The bombing damage came on the same day the IAEA chief urged Russia and Ukraine to create a “nuclear safety buffer zone” around the Zaporizhia plant amid growing fears the fighting could wreak havoc on a country still haunted by the Chernobyl disaster. . “We are playing with fire and something very, very catastrophic could happen,” IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi warned in a video conference on Tuesday, days after an inspection visit to the plant. In this photo released by the IAEA on September 2, damage is seen at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the factory bombings. (IAEA/Reuters) In a detailed report on his visit, the IAEA said shelling around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant must stop immediately. “This requires agreement by all parties concerned to establish a nuclear safety and protection zone” around the plant, it said. The report also recommended that feeder lines outside the ZNPP site be restored as soon as possible to ensure that power would be available at all times. Employees of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant are pictured during the IAEA visit in this image released on September 2. (IAEA/Reuters) Experts say the reactors at Zaporizhzhia are designed to withstand natural disasters, even plane crashes, but unpredictable fighting has repeatedly threatened to disrupt cooling systems.
