Five days of consequences elimination: Latest on Chornobyl NPP after Russian drone strike
Photo: Russians hit the sarcophagus of the Chornobyl NPP (Vitalii Nosach/RBC-Ukraine)
As of the morning of Tuesday, February 18, rescuers are still working to eliminate the consequences of a Russian drone strike on the sarcophagus at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), Ukraine's Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources reports.
According to the ministry, as of 07:00 a.m. Kyiv time on Tuesday, radiation levels remain under constant monitoring, with fluctuations staying within normal limits for each control point.
An inspection of the sarcophagus arch revealed that the drone attack damaged the outer cladding. There are also through-hole breaches spanning an area of up to 15 square meters. Inspectors discovered cladding defects and damage to the internal insulation layer, as well as the destruction of bolt connections.
Regarding load-bearing structures, the joint nodes in the upper part of the maintenance garage were found to be deformed.
Drone attack on Chornobyl NPP
During the night of Friday, February 14, the Russian army launched another drone strike on Ukrainian territory. The sarcophagus at Chornobyl NPP was hit by a drone equipped with a high-explosive warhead. The drone went undetected by radars due to its low flight altitude - about 85 meters.
According to the State Agency for the Management of the Exclusion Zone, the consequences of the attack could have been catastrophic if the drone had hit just 15 meters away from the impact site.
Earlier, reports emerged that firefighting operations at the Chornobyl NPP had been suspended, with the situation being monitored via drones.
However, on February 17, new smoldering hotspots were discovered on the sarcophagus.
