Explosions near the Khmelnytskyi NPP: Ukraine officials and IAEA spoke about the consequences

On the night of October 24-25, Russia attacked Ukraine with “Shakhed” attack drones. One of the targets, apparently, was the Khmelnytskyi NPP / nuclear power plant. The air attacks of the russian drones continue here for the fourth day in a row.

The Ministry of Energy confirmed that the russian Federation struck the territory near the Khmelnytsky nuclear plant.

“As a result of the explosion, the windows in the administrative and household and laboratory and household buildings were damaged,” the press service said in a statement.

Due to damage to power lines, 1,860 consumers in the cities of Slavuta and Netishyn lost power.

At the same time, two buildings of the nuclear plant itself were also damaged.
The authorities deployed an operational headquarters to eliminate the consequences of the attack.

According to the director general of the IAEA, there was no direct impact of the drones on the site of the station, and the explosions did not affect the operation of the Khao NPP or its connection to the power grid.

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Raphael Grossi, commented on the explosions near the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant on October 25.
This was reported by the IAEA press service. “This incident once again highlights the extremely precarious nuclear security situation in Ukraine, which will continue as long as this tragic war continues. The fact that numerous windows at the site were broken shows how close it was. We may not be so lucky next time.” , – said Grossi.

He emphasized that a strike on a nuclear power plant should be avoided at all costs.

According to him, IAEA experts said that two loud explosions were heard. Later, they were informed that two drones were shot down at a distance of approximately 5 and 20 km from the object.

The director general of the IAEA said that there was no direct impact of the drones on the site of the station, and the explosions did not affect the operation of the Khao NPP or its connection to the power grid. However, the shock wave damaged the windows of several buildings on the site, including the entrance to the reactor buildings, the auxiliary building, the special equipment building, the training center and other facilities. Seismic monitoring stations installed in the area of the Khao NPP also recorded the seismic effects of the explosions. The exact amount of damage is currently being assessed by the IAEA team.

In his evening dress to the Nation, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also emphasised, that “this strike near a nuclear power facility serves as another reminder to all of our partners of the importance of strengthening Ukraine’s air defense and the dangers that exist when Russia has ways to circumvent global sanctions.”

Ukraine Front Lines

Tags: Khmelnytskyi NPP russia ukraine war