VIENNA, June 6. /TASS/. A prolonged absence of cooling water at the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant will disrupt the operation of emergency diesel generators, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said on Tuesday.

"Absence of cooling water in the essential cooling water systems for an extended period of time would cause fuel melt and inoperability of the emergency diesel generators. However, our current assessment is that there is no immediate risk to the safety of the plant," Grossi said in a statement.

Grossi also pointed out that the Zaporozhye NPP has a number of alternative sources of water for cooling, the main one being "a large cooling pond," with enough water in it for "several months."

Novaya Kakhovka Mayor Vladimir Leontyev earlier said that overnight strikes on the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) led to the collapse of hydraulic sluice valves on the plant’s dam, triggering an uncontrolled discharge of water. The emergency services said that three spans of the plant collapsed under water pressure.

Water from the Kakhovka Reservoir is used in the cooling system of the Zaporozhye NPP.