At Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant, Disaster feels Imminent

Fears of a nuclear catastrophe have reached a fever pitch at Europe's largest nuclear plant, where Ukraine and Russia continue to trade fire and accusations of sabotage. I spoke with a former engineer at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant who outlined the dangers at the site and why the media has been getting it wrong.

In a country haunted by ghosts of nuclear catastrophe, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant feels like a ticking time bomb.

Fears of a nuclear catastrophe have reached a fever pitch in southern Ukraine, where for months Ukraine and Russia have traded fire and accusations of plotting a manufactured disaster at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. 

But the chance of a nuclear meltdown has increased sharply since the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, which unleashed a catastrophic flood and jeopardized the supply of water needed to cool the plant’s reactors and spent fuel. 

For one former worker at the plant who spoke to i24NEWS on the condition of anonymity, disaster feels imminent. Yet, he doesn’t believe the discourse around the dam is correct.

"It's dangerous. But how dangerous? I don't know, because now all reactors are shut down. There’s maybe one unit working on its lowest power. Even if the reactors are shut down, they must be cooled,” the former worker explained.

For “Chemist,” who now serves as a company commander in the Ukrainian armed forces, it's not about the scale of destruction that many have warned about. He suggests that Ukraine has learned its lessons from Chernobyl by implementing a series of safety mechanisms and backup fail safes. 

It’s also why he dismisses the alarm over reports of explosives seen on the third and fourth nuclear reactors. 

"They can destroy a unit, but it will not be catastrophic. They just destroy reactor systems and we can use them when the nuclear power plants will be freed. Or they will destroy the reactor systems so much so that we cannot use them once they leave. It can't explode like Chernobyl, even if there's a catastrophic event. All the materials will be inside this building. But if you [blow up] spent oil, a lot of the area will become radioactive,” he said. 

The chemist believes the danger lies here, in the dozens of contaminated fuel barrels parked inside the plant compound. 

When the Ukrainians had control of the plant, every so often those barrels would be safely transported off-site. But like many of the safety protocols Ukrainians used to implement at the plant, satellite imagery has confirmed that those protocols have not been kept up by Russians – a radioactive trigger waiting to be detonated. 

"If they want to do the most damage, if they want to make a radioactive catastrophe, I think they can blast these barrels. It's like a dirty bomb.”

While he doesn't know what the current situation is inside the plant and whether it will have sufficient water to cool the sole working reactor, to him, it sent a message. 

"After the Kakhovka dam, I'm not sure the Russians wouldn't do it. Why not?"

He no longer has family in the Zaporizhzhia area, just a close friend whom he speaks to only occasionally. His friend still works inside the plant, but Chemist is extremely careful with their communication. They never discuss the plant itself, only sending surface-level messages to check how the other is doing and about Chemist’s godson.

“Because I'm in the army and my friend is in occupied territory, I don't want for him to be put in danger. It's dangerous to speak." 

That's the reality for many communicating with Ukrainians in occupied territory, who feel that they are being heavily monitored by their occupier. His only glimpse inside the plant will come in the event of a catastrophe, in which case his friend has agreed to send him an SOS message.

While the international atomic energy agency and Ukrainian officials have assured the public that the plant is not at imminent risk after the dam break, tensions have increased sharply ever since. And this chemist has little faith in the international body responsible for assuring nuclear safety.

"They showed that they cannot do anything. They went to the station and the Russians showed them what they need and they go, ‘It’s ok.’ It's sad. But it's dangerous, it's so dangerous.”

Should disaster strike, he estimated an 18-mile radius around the plant would see lethal amounts of radiation, endangering thousands of people. And now, over 500 days into the war, the available options to avert disaster remain limited. 

For those living around the plant, they can only wait and hope.