Evidence suggests that the collapse of the Kakhovka damin the Kherson region of Ukraine, it was the result of an internal explosion caused by Russia. The New York Times reports it, quoting Ukrainian and American engineers and explosives experts, and referring to the dam project. “The evidence clearly suggests that the dam was damaged in an explosion caused by the party that controls it: Russia,” the Times said in an article titled ‘An Inside Job,’ noting it had found evidence that an explosive charge was “placed deep in the structure”. However, only a thorough examination of the dam after the water has drained will establish the sequence of events that led to the destruction.
According to two American engineers, based on seismic and satellite surveys of explosions in the area, by far the most probable cause of the collapse is the detonation of an explosive charge in the internal maintenance tunnel below the water level leading to the turbine hall. “If the goal is to destroy the dam, we need a big explosion,” said Michael West, a geotechnical engineer and dam safety expert.
Since the hydroelectric power station was built in 1950, in the Soviet era, the Russians therefore have the construction project. This is why Ihor Strilets, a Ukrainian engineer who worked on the dam, agrees with the hypothesis of the explosive in the tunnel. According to his analysis, the explosion destroyed part of the structure’s foundation and the water pressure did the rest.
The Kremlin has accused Kiev of sabotaging the dam, which contained a reservoir the size of the United States’ Great Salt Lake, to cut off a key water source to Crimea and divert attention away from a “faltering” counter-offensive against the Russian forces. Ukraine accuses Russia of blowing up the Soviet-era dam, under Russian control since the early days of its 2022 invasion, triggering flooding of a large swath of the battlefield, destroying farmland and cutting off water supplies to civilians.
#Ukraine #NYT #Kakhovka #dam #blown #Russia #evidence