Agency highlights power outages and water shortages in Enerhodar, where most workers live
Staff of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station have been experiencing further hardships because of the military conflict, with yet another power outage in the nearby city of Enerhodar and a shortage of tap water also affecting their workplace, International Atomic Energy Agency director-general Rafael Grossi said on 19 July.
In the latest incident, the IAEA team stationed at Zaporizhzhia was informed by the plant that a military strike damaged a regional sub-station, cutting electricity to Enerhodar and also impacting water supplies.
Enerhodar and Zaporizhzhia are on the southern front of the conflict and were seized by Russian forces in early March 2022, soon after Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
IAEA experts reported that for the second time last week there was no tap water available in some buildings at the site.
People living in Enerhodar, including most Zaporizhzhia employees, have faced several such privations in recent weeks, the IAEA said.
“Such incidents clearly add to an already very stressful situation for people working at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant,” Grossi said.
“We will continue to monitor the situation. The general wellbeing of staff is a source of concern since it can also have an impact on nuclear safety and security.”
Despite the instability in the electricity and water supply to Enerhodar, the availability of offsite power and cooling water at the six-unit nuclear station was unaffected, as it continues to receive electricity from two remaining offsite power lines. Eleven groundwater wells continue to provide the water needed to maintain cooling of the six reactors, which are all in cold shutdown.
