Politics
Chernobyl disconnected from power grid, Ukraine warns of potential radioactive leak
Ukrainian authorities have warned that Russian forces have completely disconnected the Chernobyl nuclear plant from the power grid, raising concerns over the cooling of spent fuel
March 9, 2022 8:49am
Updated: March 9, 2022 2:47pm
Ukrainian authorities have warned that Russian forces have completely disconnected the Chernobyl nuclear plant from the power grid, raising concerns over the cooling of spent fuel.
A 750Kw power line connecting the site to the grid has been severed "due to the damage caused by the occupiers,” leaving the Chernobyl station and all nuclear facilities of the Exclusion Zone without power, Ukraine’s state communications service said in a tweet on Wednesday.
Update on Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant:
— SSSCIP Ukraine (@dsszzi) March 9, 2022
750 kV ChNPP - Kyiv high-voltage line is currently disconnected due to the damage caused by the occupiers.
As a result, the Chernobyl station and all nuclear facilities in the Exclusion Zone are without electricity.
Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba also took to Twitter on Wednesday to describe the damage and call for international support.
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 1/2
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 9, 2022
"The only electrical grid supplying the Chornobyl NPP and all its nuclear facilities occupied by Russian army is damaged," he wrote. "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."
But a lack of power is the least of Ukraine’s concerns and the country’s state-run nuclear firm Energoatom warned on Wednesday that radioactive substances could be released from the Chernobyl plant because nuclear fuel cannot presently be cooled and the Russian offensive made it impossible to make the necessary repairs.
Furthermore, the situation has left the nuclear plant's ventilation systems completely inoperative and personnel are being exposed to "dangerous doses of radiation," ABC News reports.
Energoatom further warned that there are approximately 20,000 spent fuel assemblies stored at the facility that require constant cooling – but without power to cool the pumps, the temperature in the holding pools will increase, prompting the release of radioactive substances into the environment.
"Reserve diesel generators have a 48-hour capacity to power the Chornobyl NPP," he added. "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 added on Twitter.
To make matters worse, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) warned Tuesday that the same shift personnel have been on duty at Chernobyl since a day before Russian troops entered the site on Feb. 24.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said in a statement picked up by Fox News that personnel operating nuclear facilities must rest and work regular shifts, asserting that this is necessary for overall nuclear safety.
"I’m deeply concerned about the difficult and stressful situation facing staff at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant and the potential risks this entails for nuclear safety," Grossi said in a statement. "I call on the forces in effective control of the site to urgently facilitate the safe rotation of personnel there."
