Several villages in Ukraine flooded after Kakhovka dam blast
Kyiv, The Gulf Observer: Several villages have been “completely or partially flooded” following damage to the Russian-occupied Nova Kakhovka dam in Ukraine and evacuations from the area have begun, a Ukrainian official said.
Tens of thousands of people “are in the critical zone on the right bank of the Kherson region,” Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the Kherson military administration, said on social media, adding that there was flooding in several areas along the Dnipro River.
The water level at the town immediately adjacent to the dam has risen by 10 metres (33 feet) as of 0900 GMT and will increase further its Russia-installed mayor, Vladimir Leontyev, said on Tuesday.
Earlier, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry called for residents of 10 villages on the river’s right bank and parts of the city of Kherson to gather essential documents and pets, turn off appliances and leave, while cautioning against possible disinformation.
Ukraine and Russia both blamed each other for the breaching of the dam.
Ukraine has said that 150 tonnes of engine oil spilt into a river in Kherson following the destruction of a dam it blamed on Russia.
The wall of the major dam in a part of southern Ukraine that Moscow controls collapsed on Tuesday after a reported explosion, sending water gushing downriver and prompting dire warnings of ecological damage as officials from both sides in the war ordered residents to evacuate.
