Ukraine floods recede but fears over disease remain

The size of the flooded country successful the Kherson portion arsenic a effect of the Kakhovka dam breach has astir halved, Ukraine says - but experts and officials fearfulness infectious diseases whitethorn dispersed successful polluted waters.

Water levels person dropped by 27cm (10in), the determination administration's head, Alexander Prokudin, said.

But dozens of settlements and thousands of homes successful Ukraine are inactive flooded, the interior ministry said.

Tens of thousands deficiency drinking water.

The large dam burst connected Tuesday, releasing a immense torrent of h2o which rapidly flooded immense areas of onshore connected some sides of the Dnipro river.

Ukraine has blamed Russia for "blowing up" the dam, located successful a Russian-controlled country of Ukraine. Russia has denied this, and has accused Ukraine of being liable for its destruction.

The BBC has not verified either claim, though it seems apt that Russian forces, who controlled the dam, decided to stroke it up successful bid to complicate Ukraine's ongoing counteroffensive.

Behind the dam, the immense Kakhovka reservoir - a captious root of h2o for the portion - has drained of water.

The World Health Organization (WHO)'s Ukraine representative, Dr Jarno Habicht, told the BBC the concern was "devastating" and providing safe, cleanable h2o was a priority. He said it was important to support an oculus connected water-borne illnesses and that precautionary illustration investigating was ongoing.

The UK's defence ministry said radical were facing a "sanitation crisis" with constricted entree to harmless h2o and an accrued hazard of water-borne diseases.

While Ukrainian officials said nary cases of infectious illnesses person been reported truthful far, the metropolis of Kherson - astir 100km (62 miles) from the Kakhovka dam and severely affected by the floods - has introduced restrictions connected the usage of stream h2o successful bid to forestall their spread.

The flooding of houses and sewage facilities means the h2o is present highly polluted, the metropolis subject medication said, meaning that bathing, sportfishing and drinking the water, oregon giving it to animals, is prohibited.

Ukraine's interior ministry said 32 settlements had been flooded successful Ukrainian-controlled Kherson, portion different 14 were flooded successful the Russian-controlled part. Another 31 settlements were flooded successful the Mykolayiv region. 

The demolition of the Kakhovka dam has besides apt led to the disruption of h2o supplies to Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia successful 2014.

The North Crimean Canal draws its h2o proviso from the Kakhovka reservoir, located down the now-destroyed dam.

Ukrainian hydro vigor institution Ukrhydroenergo said the h2o level successful the reservoir had fallen by much than 7m (23ft) and connected Sunday the UK defence ministry warned that "water volition soon halt flowing" to the peninsula.

Drone footage filmed aft the dam breach appears to amusement importantly reduced h2o levels adjacent the entranceway to the canal.

Whoever was liable for the demolition of the Kakhovka dam volition person done truthful knowing that it would deprive Crimea of severely needed caller water.

The canal was blocked by Ukraine pursuing the annexation of Crimea successful 2014, but Russia rapidly unblocked it aft it invaded confederate Ukraine past year.

Russian commanders whitethorn person concluded that rendering the waterway useless again by blowing up the dam mightiness person seemed similar a necessary, if extreme, terms to wage for complicating Ukraine's subject plans.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky confirmed that his country's long-awaited counter-offensive against Russia had started.

"Counter-offensive and antiaircraft actions are taking place," helium said connected Saturday.

Ukrainian troops are reported to person precocious successful the eastbound adjacent Bakhmut and successful the southbound adjacent Zaporizhzhia, and person carried retired long-range strikes connected Russian targets.

Assessing the world of the concern connected the beforehand lines is difficult. The respected US-based deliberation tank, Institute for the Study of War, says that portion Ukrainian forces look to person made immoderate localised gains, they person struggled to interruption done dug-in Russian positions.

Meanwhile successful Russia's Belgorod region, bordering Ukraine, obstruction postulation was suspended aft a freight bid derailed connected Saturday night.

Belgorod's borderline areas person been deed by drones, shelling and cross-border raids successful the past weeks.

Further north, the politician of the Kaluga region, Vladislav Shapsha, said determination had been 2 drone crashes - 1 adjacent the colony of Strelkovk and the different successful a forest.

The BBC has not independently verified the incidents.

Additional reporting by Paul Adams.