Ukraine: Calls for ceasefire as Chernobyl safety systems 'at risk' after power outage

9 March 2022, 15:21

Fresh warnings have been raised over Chernobyl
Fresh warnings have been raised over Chernobyl. Picture: Alamy

By Will Taylor

Chernobyl has been knocked off the power grid and the system used to cool nuclear material there could now be at risk, it has been warned.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

Ukrainian authorities say the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster, which has fallen under the control of invading Russian forces, is operating on back-up power.

Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba called for a ceasefire after saying the power grid which supplied electricity to the site is damaged, though the cause is unclear. Data is no longer being transmitted.

The Ukrainians say that systems used to cool nuclear material could be at risk. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the grid supplying electricity is damaged and called for a cease-fire to allow for repairs.

Read more: Russian troops face freezing to death in their tanks as -20C weather grips Ukraine

Read more: Pictured: Fleeing family killed by Russians after image that sickened the world

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it was told about a loss of power by Kyiv, which violates a "key safety pillar on ensuring uninterrupted power supply", but sees "no critical impact on safety" from the power cut.

But Professor Claire Corkhill, the chair of the Nuclear Material Degradation at the University of Sheffield's Department of Materials Science and Engineering, said: "With the electricity supply to the Chernobyl site unavailable there are several areas of concern with regards to the safety of the nuclear material stored there."

Prof Corkhill leads a team that is helping the clean up at Fukushima, the site of a nuclear incident in Japan.

She explained that nuclear fuel from reactors one and three needs to be cooled constantly by fresh, cool water getting pumped into the ponds used to store it.

Without power, the water could slowly evaporate and cause the building to become contaminated by low levels of radioactive isotopes.

Read more: Brit soldiers face court martial if they travel to fight in Ukraine, defence sec warns

Levels at the plant are monitored by systems "so that we can be aware of any potential reasons for concern about the exposed nuclear fuel inside".

"Another serious concern is the maintenance of the ventilation system in the New Safe Confinement structure," Prof Corkhill, who researches radioactive waste material in the long term, went on.

Children's hospital in Mariupol seen destroyed after being bombed

"This prevents further degradation of reactor number four and the hazardous exposed nuclear fuel within, and is essential to the future decommissioning of the site.

"If there is no power to this structure, we could see the complete failure of the 1.5 billion euro [£1.25 billion] decommissioning programme to make the site safe once and for all."

Mr Kuleba said on Twitter: "Reserve diesel generators have a 48-hour capacity to power the Chornobyl NPP. After that, cooling systems of the storage facility for spent nuclear fuel will stop, making radiation leaks imminent."

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

The Home Office UK Visas & Immigration Office at Lunar House in Croydon, London, UK.

Home Office tells children, aged 11 and eight, they must return to Brazil without parents or face being 'detained'

Yvonne Ford, 59, from Barnsley.

Brit grandmother who died from rabies after being scratched by puppy pictured, as family issues stark warning

The 35-year-old received the news after earning his biggest win in two years, which also helped him reclaim a spot in the world's top 200 rankings

Dan Evans handed Wimbledon wildcard after stunning win over world No.13 Frances Tiafoe

How Iran could hit back: The growing threat to Western bases as Israeli strikes on Tehran escalate

How Iran could hit back: The growing threat to Western bases as Israeli strikes on Tehran escalate

Jennifer Abbot, 69, was discovered stabbed to death in her Camden home

Manhunt as police search for suspect after woman, 69, stabbed to death in home over 'diamond-encrusted Rolex'

Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho.

'We'll make him pay': Leaked Jose Mourinho texts spark scandal in Turkish football

Exclusive
'If you find a gun, you phone the police': Fishing for firearms, knives and grenades in the canals of the North

'If you find a gun, you phone the police': Fishing for firearms, knives and grenades along Britain's canals

Metropolitan Police handout photo of disgraced paedophile Gary Glitter.

Gary Glitter to remain in jail after parole board turn down release bid

Annabel Rook

Children of 'murdered' mother-of-two found in her £1.4m home after gas explosion escaped as they were 'at a sleepover'

Morocco is estimated to have around 3 million stray dogs, known locally as "Beldis"

Brit dies from rabies after contact with stray dog while on holiday in Morocco

A court sketch drawn from a video link shows Erin Patterson giving evidence in her own homicide trial at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court in Morwell, Victoria

Woman on trial for 'mushroom murders' should not be found guilty for 'lying', defence argues

Eddie Howe faces decisions over how to line up his squad next season

How Newcastle could line-up for 2025-26

Forensic experts and DGCA officials searching for evidence at Air India Plane crash site

'Major breakthrough' in Air India crash investigation as experts spot 'game-changing' detail in new video

Iran's supreme leader has hit back at Trump.

Iran will not surrender, supreme leader says, as he warns of 'irreparable damage' if US launches strikes

Heston Blumenthal posing for photographers outside his Fat Duck restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, in 2009.

Chef Heston Blumenthal says moment he was sectioned was ‘like a nightmare’

Family members of staff at the British embassy in Tel Aviv, left have been withdrawn, after Iran threatened all-out war amid potential US involvement in its conflict with Israel.

Families of staff at British embassy in Tel Aviv 'temporarily withdrawn' - as Iran warns of all-out war