Blowing of the Kakhovska HPP: the European Union is ready to help with the consequences of flooding

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, told the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, about the explosion of the Kakhovska hydroelectric plant and the consequences it has for people and the environment.

The EUʼs chief diplomat stated that the bloc is ready to provide aid, in particular humanitarian, to mitigate the consequences of "this catastrophe caused by Russia.”

• On the night of June 6, the dam of the Kakhovska HPP in the Kherson region was destroyed by an explosion, and the evacuation of residents from dangerous areas began. Ukraine accused Russia of undermining the hydroelectric power station, and the occupying authorities of the Kherson region announced that the hydroelectric power station had been "fired". Due to the explosion of the Kakhovska HPP dam, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is under threat, it is also possible to deprive people of drinking water in the south of the Kherson region and in the Crimea, and to destroy part of the population centers and the biosphere.
• On the right bank of the Dnipro, 16,000 people were in the critical flooding zone, evacuation was announced in the region. After the detonation of the hydroelectric power station, the zoo in Nova Kakhovka was flooded, where almost all the animals died.
• So far, more than 1,300 people have been evacuated from the flooded zone in the Kherson region, Serhii Kruk, the head of the State Emergency Service, said. 500 rescuers and 160 units of State Emergency Service equipment from eleven regions were involved in the liquidation of the consequences of the explosion of the Kakhovska HPP.
• There may be negative consequences for the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, but the situation is under control. The water level in the Kakhovsky Reservoir is rapidly decreasing, and water from this reservoir is necessary for the station to receive power for the turbine capacitors and safety systems of the ZNPP.
• Reconstruction of the Kakhovska HPP will cost up to $1 billion and will last five years. According to approximate estimates, 35-37 villages will be flooded, said the head of "Ukrhydroenergo" Ihor Syrota.
• The United Nations will also provide humanitarian aid to victims of the destruction of the dam, as stated by its Secretary General Antonio Guterres.