Freiburg (dpa/lsw) – The expert on nuclear power accidents, Wolfgang Raskob from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), is concerned about a possible accident at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant because of the war in Ukraine. The two risks that he sees and that the Atomic Energy Agency IAEA also emphasizes are incorrect operation – and that the electricity fails completely, Raskob told the “Badische Zeitung” (Freiburg) on Friday.
The fuel rods in the running plants would have to be cooled, said the meteorologist, who deals with accident prevention after nuclear accidents. “It was the lack of cooling that ultimately caused the accident in Fukushima. That’s also feared here.”
If the power goes out, for example because the Russian army destroys the lines and the emergency diesel is only enough for two days, then a real problem arises. The fuel elements would have to be cooled for months, Raskob said. “I am not sure that the Russian side fully understands these consequences.”
According to Ukrainian sources, a training building near a reactor in Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in eastern Ukraine, Zaporizhia, has been on fire for the past few days after it is said to have been shot at by Russian soldiers. The nuclear power plant is now occupied by Russian troops.
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