Due to the sabotage of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, 80 towns and villages are underwater – Zelensky
At least 100,000 people lived in those areas before the russian invasion, and tens of thousands still remain there
Due to the sabotage of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, 80 towns and villages have been submerged underwater.
This was announced by President Volodymyr Zelensky during an online speech at the Bucharest Nine Summit, Ukrinform reports.
"Unfortunately, russia has been controlling this dam and the entire Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant for more than a year. And it is physically impossible to blow it up somehow from the outside, by shelling. It was mined. It was mined by the russian occupiers. And they blew it up. And this once again demonstrates the cynicism with which russia treats the people whose land it has captured, and what russia actually brings to Europe and the world," said the head of state.
He reported that at 2:50 a.m., the russians had blown up the dam of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, and since then, flooding of the southern regions of Ukraine has been ongoing.
"It was an absolutely deliberate, prepared explosion. They knew exactly what they were doing. Just imagine the volume of water held by this dam. It was one of the largest reservoirs in Ukraine," the President pointed out.
He informed that at least 100,000 people had lived in these areas before the russian invasion, at least tens of thousands were still there. 80 towns and villages are underwater, evacuation is ongoing.
At the same time, Zelensky stressed that these were just the primary consequences.
"The Kakhovka reservoir was a source of drinking water for millions of people. Now, instead of a water supply system, there is only a water truck. Imagine that for cities with tens or hundreds of thousands of people. The Kakhovka reservoir was a source of water for farming and agricultural production. Huge areas are now without irrigation. And now it is even difficult to determine what the consequences for the environment will be," he explained.
The President considers the actions of the russians to be ecocide. He noted that this was the largest man-made environmental disaster in Europe in decades.
At the same time, the head of state added that all Ukrainian services, everyone who can provide people with rescue, were involved, but only on the territory controlled by Ukraine.
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