Nuclear Power Plant Safety Concerns: Minister: Staff In Zaporizhia Are Being Tortured

Nuclear power plant safety concern
Minister: Staff in Zaporizhia are being tortured

9/3/2022 7:13 am

The situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant has been confused for days. Recently, the Russian occupiers had severely restricted contact with the International Atomic Energy Agency. Now the Ukrainian energy minister is making serious accusations.

According to Ukraine’s energy minister, Russian forces are “torturing” staff at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant to force them to make a public statement. Herman Halushchenko claims in a Facebook post that the operational staff have been held hostage for four days. “There are about 500 Russian soldiers and 50 units of heavy equipment at the station. The station employees are physically and mentally exhausted,” Halushchenko said.

Over the weekend, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) raised concerns about developments at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Ukraine had informed the IAEA that the nuclear power plant would continue to be operated by regular personnel, but that the management of the plant was now under the command of a commander of the Russian armed forces, whose approval was also required for all measures related to The technique. operation of the six reactor blocks. This contradicts the concept of safety of nuclear power plants, said the head of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi. Staff must be able to carry out their security duties without pressure.

In addition, according to information from Kiev, the Russian armed forces severely restricted communication with personnel by shutting down the Internet and some mobile networks. “Reliable communication between the regulator and the operator is a fundamental part of overall nuclear safety,” Grossi said. However, he also noted that all radiation values ​​are currently in the normal range and operations are going smoothly. Recently, a fire broke out in an annex building on the site of the nuclear power plant in the course of the fighting, which was quickly extinguished.