According to the warring parties, the Kakhovka dam near the front in the Russian-occupied Kherson area of southern Ukraine was seriously damaged. Ukraine is preparing for extensive floods and has begun evacuations.
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| Nova Kakhovka Dam in Kherson, Ukraine |
On Tuesday, Kiev and Moscow blamed one other for the dam catastrophe, which might have devastating ramifications. The reservoir feeds water to Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, as well as the seized Zaporizhia nuclear power facility. Simultaneously, it is uncertain what flooding along the existing front will signify for a potential Ukrainian invasion.
According to the Russian news agency TASS, the Russian side, which first downplayed the damage, is now highlighting that half of the dam has been demolished and that the dam is continuing to fall.
The manner in which the dam was demolished is unknown. According to the Ukrainian Task Force South, the Russian occupants blew up the dam at Nova Kakhovka themselves. The dam was blown up "in a panic" by Russian forces, according to Kiev. Russia, for its part, accused Ukrainian bombardment. The region's military governor, Olexandr Prokudin, warned that the water level might reach a catastrophic level in five hours.
Evacuations have begun on the western bank of the Dnipro River, when the Ukrainians seized the regional capital of Cherson. The dam's collapse was termed as "ecocide" by Andriy Yermak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the Russian state news agency TASS, the catastrophe might hit dozens of communities.
The water level near the collapsed dam has already increased by five meters, according to the Russian news agency RIA. Several downstream islands have now been fully submerged, according to RIA, citing local authorities. The precise extent is presently unknown.
According to Russian official news outlets, Vladimir Leontiev, the mayor of Nowa Kakhovka nominated by Moscow, has altered his original words, according to which there is no need to transport citizens to safety. For safety considerations, a portion of the city's electricity supply has been shut off. Both parties claimed that the nearby hydroelectric power facility was also damaged and that repairs were not possible.
Leontyev also recognized that there might be water supply issues in the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, south of Kherson, which Russia annexed in 2014. This is fed by water from the reservoir. Both parties' information could not be independently confirmed.
Several reports about the dam's destruction spread on Russian and Ukrainian social media networks, including a video of water gushing from a large corridor. Additional recordings are alleged to show rising water levels in the Cherson area. The videos' legitimacy cannot be confirmed at this time.
Satellite photographs reveal a leak as well, however it is unclear how it occurred. The dam, which stands 30 meters tall and is 3.2 kilometers long, was erected as part of the Kachovka hydroelectric power station in 1956. Over an area of over 2,200 square kilometers, the reservoir stores around 18 billion cubic meters of water. The reservoir feeds water to Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, as well as the seized Zaporizhia nuclear power facility.
According to the Russian version, as TASS reported, there is no immediate threat for this, citing an administrative representative sent by Russia in the seized region. It was also said that there is no threat of the Crimean canal drying up.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) presently sees no threat to the nuclear power plant but is keeping a close eye on the situation. The Ukrainian nuclear authority sees threats but believes the issue is under control for the time being.
Russia has earlier stated that another significant advance by Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk area had been thwarted. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, eight Leopard combat tanks and three French wheeled tanks were destroyed on Monday evening. There were 1,500 Ukrainian troops slain. In addition, 109 armored vehicles were destroyed. The report could not be independently verified, and Ukraine did not respond.
Prigozhin had reservations about the information. He did not believe the reported number of casualties among Ukrainians was feasible. That would necessitate far bigger ground advances. "So I think this is just wild and absurd science fiction," Prigozhin stated in a Telegram post.