IAEA experts inspected the cooling tower after the fire at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. However, they could not establish the cause of the fire.
Points of attention
- IAEA experts have not established the cause of the fire at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
- Cooling tower number one was attacked with car tires, perhaps it was a provocation from the Russian occupiers.
- Power units of the ZNPP are operating in normal mode, the radiation background around the power plant has remained unchanged.
- The IAEA plans to continue the analysis to study the circumstances of the fire at the ZNPP without making final conclusions at this time.
What the IAEA experts managed to establish
As noted, the team of specialists confirmed that there were no significant signs of damage to the debris, ash or soot located at the base of the cooling tower.
During the inspection, neither tires nor the remains of the drone were found. At this time, the team was unable to draw any final conclusions based on the data and observations received, the statement said.
The IAEA added that they will continue their overall analysis after further inspection and access to the level of the water spray switchgear and the cold water pool.
What preceded it
On August 11, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the Russian occupiers had set a fire on the territory of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. He called on the IAEA and the world community to respond to the incident.
At the same time, there were no changes in the radiation state in the Zaporizhzhya NPP area.
Yevhen Yevtushenko, the head of the Nikopol RVA, said that the ZNPP is working normally, and the Russians probably set fire to a large number of car tires in the cooling towers. Cooling tower number one is located approximately one kilometer from the power units of the station.
Instead, the Russian occupiers blamed Ukraine for the shelling of Energodar and declared that the radiation background around the ZNPP was normal.
