Engine oil leaked after Kakhovka Dam blast heading for Black Sea — Interior Ministry
Engine oil that leaked from the engine room of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant following the Russian destruction of the Kakhovka Dam is now moving towards the Black Sea, the Interior Ministry said on Telegram on June 15.
This environmental disaster was discussed by Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko with US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink, the ministry reported.
While speaking on national television, Klymenko added that Ukraine had asked international partners to help with containing the spills.
"We had been monitoring the water area of the Kakhovka Water Reservoir, the Dnipro, and the Dnipro tributary,” he said.
“Our specialists did everything to find where that fuel oil had leaked. After the water floods began to recede, we... located the fuel oil in the floodplains of the Kakhovka Reservoir... and at (the area of) enterprises on the right bank of Kherson.”
He also expressed hope that water would be pumped out of houses in Kherson Oblast within days. Klymenko also called on residents in the affected areas to get their pets and domestic animals vaccinated in order to “minimize the risks of diseases and epidemics.”
In the early hours of June 6, 2023, Russian troops destroyed the Kakhovka Dam, which has been occupied for over a year. Towns and villages downstream of the dam along the Dnipro River were completely or partially flooded.
Ukraine’s hydropower operator, Ukrhydroenergo, reported that the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant had been completely destroyed and was beyond repair. Ukraine’s Southern Command clarified that while the entire dam was not destroyed, yet the damage was significant.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gathered a special meeting of the National Security and Defense Council, during which he ordered the evacuation of at-risk areas and drinking water supplies to all towns and villages that used water from the Kakhovka Reservoir.
As of June 15, there were 37 settlements that were still flooded. Of them, 20 belong to the area controlled by Ukraine. More than 1,800 houses were affected.
Kherson Oblast’s Military Administration reported that on June 15, the water had dropped to the level of 192 cm.
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