It was the second time in as many days that the plant, which is the largest of its kind in Europe, has been hit. Ukraine and Russia have shared responsibility for both attacks. The missiles fired on Saturday night struck near a dry storage facility where 174 barrels of spent nuclear fuel are stored, according to Energoatom, Ukraine’s state-run nuclear power company. Explosions blew out windows in parts of the factory and one worker was treated for shrapnel injuries. “Apparently, they specifically targeted the refined fuel containers, which are stored outside next to the bombing site,” the company said in a statement on Telegram. Three radiation monitoring detectors were also damaged on Saturday, making it “impossible to detect and respond in time in the event of a worsening radioactivity situation or radiation leakage from spent nuclear fuel barrels,” Energoatom said. “This time a nuclear disaster was miraculously averted, but miracles can’t last forever,” he added. Kyiv accused Russian forces of stockpiling heavy weapons and launched attacks from the factory, which they seized in early March and still hold. Moscow, meanwhile, has claimed that Ukrainian troops are targeting the compound. Read the full story here.
