Fire rages at Chornobyl NPP after shelter hit: Is radiation risk looming?
Photo: Fire continues at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant after a strike on the shelter (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
A fire continues at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant after a strike on the shelter of the destroyed fourth reactor. As of the morning of February 15, no radiation threat has been detected, according to the State Agency of Ukraine for the Management of the Exclusion Zone on Facebook.
It is reported that efforts continue to extinguish the fire in the outer cladding of the new safe confinement arch. From 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM, five emergency services workers and two units of equipment were involved. As of 7:00 AM, 40 emergency services workers and eight units of equipment have been engaged.
Technical condition of the new confinement:
- defects in the cladding with no complete destruction up to 200 square meters;
- damage to the inner filler of the cladding;
- ruptures in bolt connections;
- deformation of connection joints in the upper part of the sarcophagus.
The radiation level in the exclusion zone is monitored at 39 automated control points. As of 8:30 AM, no exceedance of ambient dose equivalent rate (PDAE) or gamma radiation was detected.
Strike on the Chornobyl sarcophagus
On Friday, February 14, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported a strike on the shelter of the fourth reactor at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The attack caused damage to the new safe confinement, leading to a fire.
According to the President, the attack was carried out by a drone with an explosive warhead. Fragments of a Russian drone with a warhead and serial number were found inside and near the shelter.
After the attack, specialists did not detect any increase in radiation levels. However, the Ministry of Energy acknowledged that significant damage could lead to a considerable rise in radiation levels.
For more details on the attack on Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and its consequences, refer to the full report by RBC-Ukraine.
