Thousands of people are being evacuated downstream of a major dam which has collapsed in the Russian-controlled area of southern Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said 80 towns and villages may be flooded after the destruction of the dam at Nova Kakhovka, which he blamed on Russia.
Water is surging down the Dnipro river, and is said to pose a catastrophic flooding risk to the city of Kherson.
Russia has denied destroying the dam – which it controls – instead blaming Ukrainian shelling.
It provides water to farmers and residents, as well as to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. It is also a vital channel carrying water south to Russian-occupied Crimea.
There are concerns about the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant – Europe’s largest – which uses reservoir water for cooling.
The situation there is said to be under control and there is “no immediate nuclear safety risk” for the plant, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Source: The BBC
Related Story: Kakhovka Dam in the Russian-controlled area of southern Ukraine destroyed
