Russian Forces Attack Chernobyl Power Lines…Again

The power lines for the site of the 1985 Chernobyl disaster have been, once again, assaulted and damaged by Russian invasion forces just after the repairs were finalized over the past weekend, as stated by Ukraine’s state power company.

The nation’s state power provider, Ukrenergo, stated in a release on Monday that power had finally been repaired on Sunday evening in the wake of damage but that “before the power supply was fully restored, the occupying forces damaged it again,” reported the Associated Press. The company has once again started to work on the second set of repairs.

This specific power line for the site is currently used to operate equipment at the former nuclear power plant to try and prevent all radiation leaks. The area is equipped with a suite of diesel generators that can be used to continue the prevention efforts during power emergencies. Additionally, the AP stated in Belarus currently has an emergency power supply system set up and running from its border nearby.

Energoatom, Ukraine’s state-run nuclear company, stated this past week that the used fuel assemblies located at the plant could not be cooled because of the power outage from the severed power connection, which had not yet been fixed because of the fighting taking place in the area. As reported by The Daily Wire:

Energoatom stated that if the fuel assemblies are not cooled, it would trigger “the release of radioactive substances into the environment. The radioactive cloud could be carried by wind to other regions of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, and Europe,” Reuters reported, adding, “The IAEA had warned on Tuesday that the systems monitoring nuclear material at the radioactive waste facilities at Chernobyl had stopped transmitting data.”

But the U.N. nuclear watchdog countered Wednesday, “Heat load of spent fuel storage pool and volume of cooling water at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sufficient for effective heat removal without need for electrical supply.”

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s state-owned grid operator Ukrenergo said, “Because of military actions of Russian occupiers the nuclear power plant in Chornobyl was fully disconnected from the power grid. Nuclear station has no power supply.”

Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs, unleashed extreme statements at Russia in the wake of the previous power outage from their attacks.

“The only electrical grid supplying the Chornobyl NPP and all its nuclear facilities occupied by Russian army is damaged. CNPP lost all electric supply. I call on the international community to urgently demand Russia to cease fire and allow repair units to restore power supply,” he claimed.

“Reserve diesel generators have a 48-hour capacity to power the Chornobyl NPP. After that, cooling systems of the storage facility for spent nuclear fuel will stop, making radiation leaks imminent. Putin’s barbaric war puts entire Europe in danger. He must stop it immediately!” Kuleba stated.

The Chernobyl site was captured by Russian forces fairly early on in the invasion of Ukraine, which caused an instance of widespread fear as quite a few were reminded of the Chernobyl disaster of 1986, which is still titled as the worst nuclear power plant accident in history.

“After a fierce battle, Ukrainian control over the Chernobyl site was lost. The condition of the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant, confinement, and nuclear waste storage facilities is unknown,” stated the adviser to the head of the Chernobyl plant, Mykhailo Podoliak, reportedly claimed in the wake of the locations capture by Russian invaders.

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