Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency stationed at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant are reporting daily military activity in the vicinity, with some explosions occurring close to the facility. This ongoing situation underscores the persistent threat faced by the plant, which remains at the heart of an active war zone, IAEA director general Rafael Grossi reported on 18 October during his Update 255 on the situation Ukraine. No damage has been reported to the plant within the past week, and the IAEA team at the site has focused its efforts on assessing the condition of the plant, as well as continuing maintenance and training activities. The team performed radiation monitoring measurements on site and in the nearby city of Enerhodar, confirming that radiation levels were normal.
In assessing maintenance at the plant, the IAEA team noted during a very recent inspection of cooling tower 1, which was damaged by fire in August, that no maintenance activities were ongoing. ZNPP management informed the IAEA that it plans to use the support of external contractors to determine the extent of the damage.
Separately, the IAEA teams at Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine nuclear power plants and the Chornobyl site, experienced air raid alarms for several days in the first half of October, but reported that nuclear safety and security is being maintained. The IAEA team at Khmelnytskyy was obliged to seek shelter on two occasions during that time.
