The Ukrainian nuclear power plant that has been surrounded by Russian forces lost power Wednesday morning when a Russian missile damaged a distant electrical substation. The plant's operator says that increased the risk of radiation disaster.
Some European countries are trying to prepare for the worst and started stockpiling iodine tablets to help protect their populations from possible radioactive fallout.
In the event of a disaster, the biggest risk outside Ukraine could be to Russia, “depending on which way the wind blows,” said Paul Dorfman, a nuclear expert at the University of Sussex in England. As power lines and substations have been damaged in fighting, Ukraine’s nuclear operator Energoatom has been forced to repeatedly rely on diesel generators. These generators, which have enough fuel for at least 10 days, have kicked into action when external power has failed — but experts say their repeated use over a short period of time increases the risk of a disaster.
The diesel generators kicked in immediately Wednesday when electricity from the missile-damaged substation was cut. External power from the transmission line was restored hours later.Shutting down the plant’s last reactor several weeks ago significantly reduced the risk of a radiation disaster by gradually increasing the time it would take for a meltdown to occur. But if cooling fails due to a complete loss of power, meltdowns would still happen eventually, said Rueffer.
Brasil Últimas Notícias, Brasil Manchetes
Similar News:Você também pode ler notícias semelhantes a esta que coletamos de outras fontes de notícias.
Russia Unleashes ‘Missile Terror’ on Ukrainian Civilians, Falsely Claims Military TargetsRussia terrorizes Ukrainian civilians with airstrike barrage, then falsely claims to be targeting legitimate military targets.
Consulte Mais informação »
Paul Whelan, American wrongfully detained in Russia, calls home on Wednesday | CNN PoliticsPaul Whelan, an American wrongfully detained in Russia for nearly four years, was able to call his parents Wednesday for only the second time in nearly a month, his brother David Whelan said in a note to the media.
Consulte Mais informação »