Ukraine dam: Thousands evacuated from ‘critical zone’ near Kakhovka plant

Thousands of radical are being evacuated downstream of a large dam which has been blown up successful Russian-held Ukraine.

President Zelensky said 80 towns and villages were astatine hazard of flooding aft the demolition of the dam astatine Nova Kakhova, which helium blamed connected Russia.

Water is surging down the Dnipro stream and is said to airs a catastrophic flooding hazard to the metropolis of Kherson.

Russia has denied destroying the dam - which it controls - alternatively blaming Ukrainian shelling.

Neither Ukraine's oregon Russia's assertion has been verified by the BBC.

The Kakhovka dam is important successful the region. It contains a reservoir, which provides h2o to farmers and residents, arsenic good arsenic to the Zaporizhzhia atomic powerfulness plant. It is besides is simply a captious transmission carrying h2o southbound to Russian-occupied Crimea.

Video footage shows a torrent of floodwater gushing done a breach successful the dam. Several towns are already flooded, portion radical successful areas further downstream are present fleeing by autobus and train.

Some 16,000 radical are successful a "critical zone", according to the caput of the Kherson region, Oleksandr Prokudin.

Mr Prokudin said h2o levels successful the Dnipro stream volition beryllium "critical" wrong 5 hours and accused Russia of committing "yet different enactment of terror".

In a Telegram post, Mr Prokudin said the evacuation of residents surviving successful the threatened areas connected the Ukraine-controlled occidental slope of the Dnipro stream were nether way, and helium appealed to residents connected the other slope - presently nether Russian power - to instantly permission their homes.

Mr Prokudin said residents were being taken by autobus to Kherson, from wherever they volition beryllium moved to antithetic cities crossed the country.

People successful low-lying parts of the metropolis of Kherson - astir 50 miles downstream - person besides been told to evacuate arsenic rapidly arsenic possible.

There are concerns astir the interaction connected the Zaporizhzhia atomic powerfulness plant, which uses h2o from a reservoir down the dam for cooling.

The concern determination is said to beryllium nether power and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said it was monitoring the concern closely.

The UN bureau said it saw "no contiguous atomic information risk" astatine Europe's biggest atomic plant.

As good arsenic the much contiguous evacuation concerns, determination are besides longer-term fears astir the damage.

The dam holds backmost the waters of the Dnipro, forming a immense reservoir that provides h2o for a big of communities upstream.

It is besides a captious portion of the transmission carrying h2o from the Dnipro to Russian-annexed Crimea.

After Russia annexed Crimea successful 2014, Ukraine blocked a transmission carrying h2o from Nova Kakhovka, triggering a h2o situation connected the peninsula.

Russian forces reopened the transmission soon aft past year's full-scale invasion. But without the dam, dropping h2o levels could erstwhile again jeopardise the travel of water.

It is not yet wide what caused the breach successful the dam, but Ukraine's subject quality has accused Russia of deliberately blowing it up aboriginal this morning.

This seems plausible, arsenic Moscow whitethorn person feared that Ukrainian forces would usage the roadworthy implicit the dam to beforehand into Russian-held territory, arsenic portion of their counter-offensive.

For Russia, anxious to support conquered territory successful confederate Ukraine, the dam represented an evident problem.

Just arsenic Ukrainian forces attacked roadworthy and obstruction bridges further downstream past autumn successful a palmy effort to isolate Russian forces successful and astir Kherson, Russia whitethorn person decided to destruct the dam to clasp up Ukraine's counter-offensive, which it fears could travel from aggregate directions.

However, a Russian authoritative claims Ukraine carried retired the onslaught connected the dam to detract from what they said were the failures of its counter-offensive.

Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed politician of the region, said the concern was not captious and that evacuations were not needed.

A large Ukrainian propulsion has been agelong expected but Kyiv has already said it would not springiness beforehand informing of its start.

There has been a notable summation successful subject activity, with Ukraine claiming to person made marginal gains elsewhere connected the beforehand line.

The latest reports are being seen arsenic a caller motion that the expected Ukrainian propulsion whitethorn person begun.

On Monday, Ukraine's lawman defence curate said astir the "epicentre of hostilities" successful Bakhmut, but did not accidental whether the counter-offensive had begun.

Bakhmut has for months been astatine the bosom of fierce fighting. It has small strategical worth - but is important symbolically some for Kyiv and Moscow.

In the aftermath of the onslaught connected the dam, Mr Zelensky said helium had called a gathering of the country's information and defence council.

Blaming "Russian terrorists" for the partial demolition of the dam, Mr Zelenksy said it "it's lone Ukraine's triumph that volition instrumentality security".

Yuri Sak, an advisor to Ukraine's ministry of defence, told the BBC Radio 4's Today programme that telephone intercepts person suggested Russia wants to people much dams.

"They're really calling to stroke up much dams connected the Dnipro river," helium said.

Ukraine's vigor ministry has said the blast astatine the dam - which is simply a hydro-electric powerfulness works - has not straight affected the country's vigor strategy and determination is presently nary menace to vigor stability.