IAEA monitors report downing and explosion of russian UAV near South Ukraine NPP. This was reported in a communiqué on the IAEA website.
Thus, the NPP informed the monitoring team that 22 unmanned aerial vehicles were detected in the monitoring area in the evening and early morning, some of which approached the facility at a distance of up to half a kilometer.
"The drone was shot down and exploded approximately 800 meters from the perimeter of the South Ukraine NPP at night, which was another incident that highlights the constant danger to nuclear safety during military conflict, said Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi after receiving information about the incident from the IAEA team on the scene," the message says.
It is noted that the South Ukraine NPP is one of three operating nuclear power plants in Ukraine, with three of its reactors currently operating at full capacity. The agency's Director General, Grossi, says that members of the IAEA team heard gunshots and explosions from their residence near the plant at around 01:00 local time, and today they visited the site where one of the drones fell and saw a crater measuring four square meters and about one meter deep.
"The team reported that nearby metal structures were damaged by shrapnel, and windows of cars near the impact site were broken. According to the station, a regional 150 kilovolt (kV) power line was also damaged, although it was not connected to the nuclear power plant and had no direct impact on nuclear safety and security. There were also no reports of casualties. Once again, drones are flying too close to nuclear power plants, jeopardizing nuclear safety. Fortunately, last night's incident did not cause any damage to the South Ukraine nuclear power plant itself. We may not be so lucky next time. I continue to call on both sides to exercise maximum military restraint near all critical nuclear facilities," Grossi said.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, on September 19, the General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) adopted a resolution obliging the aggressor country of russia to immediately deoccupy the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
On August 12, a large-scale fire broke out on the territory of the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP.
On August 7, the IAEA announced the use of artillery by the occupiers near the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
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