“Fire at Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant after Russian attack”

“Fire at Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant after Russian attack”

The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, is raging after an attack by Russian soldiers. The mayor of the nearby town of Energodar in southern Ukraine has said so, Reuters reports.

Fierce fighting is taking place between Ukrainian and Russian soldiers, Mayor Dmitro Orlov said in a message on his Telegram channel. He said there were casualties, but he did not provide further details.

According to the Russian news agency RIA, the Ukrainian Ministry of Nuclear Energy reported in the night from Thursday to Friday that a generator at the nuclear power plant was allegedly hit during a Russian attack and part of the power plant is on fire.

“Firefighters cannot start to extinguish the fire at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant – they are being fired upon at close range,” the ministry said, according to the news agency. “The first energy unit has already been hit.”

Earlier, Ukrainian authorities reported that Russian troops had entered the site with tanks and attempted to take control of the nuclear power plant. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has expressed concern about the fighting near the nuclear power plant.