Ukrainian nuclear plant is disconnected from power grid after shelling, officials say
The Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant suffered a "complete disconnection" from Ukraine’s power grid Thursday for the first time in its history, officials said.
The Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant suffered a "complete disconnection" from Ukraine’s power grid Thursday for the first time in its 40-year history, officials said.
The last two working power units at the site in southern Ukraine were disconnected after shelling sparked fires nearby, Ukraine’s national energy company, Energoatom, said.
“As a result, the station’s two working power units were disconnected from the network,” it said in a statement posted to Telegram, which blamed Russian forces for the incident. “Thus, the actions of the invaders caused a complete disconnection of the ZNPP from the power grid — the first in the history of the plant.”
The energy supply to the plant was restored later in the day, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
Intense fighting around the nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, has spurred growing fears of a nuclear catastrophe. The two sides have traded blame for the attacks, while world leaders have called for a demilitarized zone around the site.
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