IAEA struggles to determine reason of fire at Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant
Date
8/13/2024 7:27:37 AM
(MENAFN) Experts from the International Atomic energy Agency (IAEA) have been unable to pinpoint the exact cause of the recent fire at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Enerhodar, Ukraine. The fire, which occurred in the plant's cooling system on Sunday, has led to a blame game between Russia and Ukraine, each accusing the other of responsibility. Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA, reported that the team reached the affected cooling tower area on Monday and observed that the fire likely did not originate at the base of the tower. Instead, the damage appears concentrated around the distribution of water nozzles within the tower, situated about ten meters above the base.
Safety concerns prevented the experts from accessing the lower levels of the cooling tower or its base, limiting their ability to conduct a thorough investigation. The team collected debris samples, including charred and melted plastic, and found no sulfur smell, indicating the fire was likely caused by burning plastic rather than tires or drones. Despite conflicting accounts—Russia attributing the fire to a drone attack and Ukraine accusing Russian forces of setting car tires ablaze inside the cooling tower—Grossi noted that the nuclear safety of the plant remains intact. The cooling towers, which are currently out of service and not part of the reactors' cooling mechanism, have not impacted the reactors, which are fully shut down.
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