Military activity hits water supply at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant & nearby town

Military activity has hit water supplies to parts of the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station and nearby areas of southeastern Ukraine, the U.N. nuclear power watchdog said on Thursday.



Russian forces seized the station, Europe's largest with six reactors, in the first weeks of their February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and each side has since regularly accused the other of actions compromising nuclear safety.



Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said in a statement there was no shortage of well water needed to ensure fuel in the reactors remained cool.



But attacks in and around the city of Enerhodar, where many of the plant's staff live, had "targeted, among other locations, local electrical infrastructure, leading to a loss of water supply in the city and at the ZNPP site."



"Reliable access to basic services and supplies is important for staff well-being and for the continuity of their essential work," Grossi said, adding that IAEA monitors stationed at the plant had had "only limited access to tap water since 18 July."