• Fires cut Zaporizhzhia off from the national grid for the first time in its history.
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy blames Russian shelling for the damage.
• IAEA director calls for an international mission to the plant within days.

Thursday, a Russian-occupied nuclear reactor was detached from Ukraine’s electric grid, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced.

The Zaporizhzhia facility only operated securely due to backup power, he said.

Earlier fires had harmed overhead electrical lines, isolating the plant.

Fighting near Europe’s largest nuclear facility raises concerns.

“If the diesel generators hadn’t turned on, if the automation and our staff of the plant had not reacted after the blackout, then we would already be forced to overcome the consequences of the radiation accident,” President Zelensky said Thursday night.

Fires cut Zaporizhzhia off from the national grid for the first time in its history, according to Ukraine’s state nuclear agency.

Wednesday satellite photographs showed a large fire near the nuclear plant.

Volodymyr Zelensky blamed Russian shelling for the damage and accused Moscow of bringing Ukraine and Europe “one step away” from disaster.

Yevgeny Balitsky, a Russian-appointed governor, accused the Ukrainian military for the strikes and power disruptions.

Local officials confirmed acceptable radiation levels despite the Zaporizhzhia nuclear complex losing electricity Thursday.

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The plant “remained connected to a 330kV line from the nearby thermal power facility that can provide back-up electricity if needed,” the IAEA stated, citing Ukraine’s nuclear agency.

All six nuclear reactors remained disconnected from the electricity grid despite the line being restored Thursday.

The nuclear reactor supplies one-fifth of Ukraine’s electricity, therefore its continuous disconnection would be problematic.

Since March, Russian forces have captured the nuclear plant, while Ukrainian personnel continue to operate it.

The Kremlin says it will let international inspectors visit the site, but until then it’s hard to verify what’s happening.

“Almost every day there is a new incident at or near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. We can’t afford to lose any more time,” IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi called for an international mission to the plant within days.

Kyiv fears Moscow may be diverting power from the occupied nuclear reactor to link it to Russia’s grid.

Thursday, the media reported power shortages in Russian-occupied towns and villages.

The mayor of Enerhodar, which is near the nuclear facility, said the city had no electricity or water on Thursday. There were also reports of power outages in Russian-occupied Melitopol and Kherson.

Washington criticised any attempt by Moscow to divert Zaporizhzhia’s power from Kyiv’s system.

“The electricity that it produces rightly belongs to Ukraine,” US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said on Thursday evening, adding that “no country should turn a nuclear power plant into an active war zone.”

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