Ukraine’s state emergency service on Friday confirmed that the fire near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been put out.
In a statement, the state energy service officials said that a fire at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station broke out in a training building outside the plant’s perimeter. And was doused around 6.20 am local time.
Russian forces had earlier attacked Europe’s largest nuclear power plant and it was reported that a five-story training facility building next to it was on fire.
Ukraine’s president accused Moscow of resorting to “nuclear terror” and wanting to “repeat” the Chernobyl disaster. He said in a video message: “No country other than Russia has ever fired on nuclear power units. This is the first time in our history. In the history of mankind. The terrorist state now resorted to nuclear terror.”
A spokesperson for the nuclear plant, Andriy Tuz, had said one of the reactor blocks had been struck in the bombardment.
The Ukrainian authorities had also earlier said that that the nuclear plant had been “secured” and that “the nuclear safety is now guaranteed.”
Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba had warned that if the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant blew up, it would be “10 times larger” than the Chernobyl disaster of 1986.
Oleksandr Starukh, head of the military administration of the Zaporizhzhia region had said on Facebook earlier: “The director of the plant said that the nuclear safety is now guaranteed. According to those responsible for the plant, a training building and a laboratory were affected by the fire.”
Meanwhile, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement that it has also deployed 24/7 help after the attack on Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility.
The IAEA Director-General, Rafael Mariano Grossi had urged Russia to stop attacking Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and had warned of “severe danger” if the reactors were hit.
The Ukrainian authorities also confirmed that there were no casualties in the process.
The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered. To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here. If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page.
