Chernobyl powerless

The site of Ukraine’s defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant lost power recently after Russia shelled a nearby substation, Kyiv said. The UN’s atomic energy watchdog said the blackout affected the confinement structure housing the plant’s damaged reactor core, and that two emergency diesel generators were now supplying it with electricity.

The incident comes eight days after the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine also lost power — an ongoing situation that Ukraine calls “critical” but that Russia says is “under control”. Both incidents have heightened concerns about the safety of Ukraine’s nuclear sites, which have suffered repeated attacks since Russia’s 2022 invasion.

“Today, a Russian strike on one of our energy substations in Slavutych caused a blackout lasting more than three hours at the former (Chernobyl) Nuclear Power Plant facilities,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Facebook. “This included the New Safe Confinement, which protects the environment from remnants of reactor four after the 1986 explosion, as well as from radioactive debris and dust,” he added.

He accused Russia of posing a threat to global security and called for a “strong response”. The International Atomic Energy Agency said the plant had lost connection to a substation in the town of Slavutych, without elaborating.

“The site swiftly switched to alternate lines and power was restored, except for the New Safe Confinement (NSC), which covers the old sarcophagus built after the 1986 Chernobyl accident,” the United Nations agency said. “Two emergency diesel generators are now supplying the NSC with electricity.