MOSCOW, June 6. /TASS/. There is a risk that the water in Novaya Kakhovka may become contaminated, as the city cemetery has been flooded after the Kakhovka Hydropower Plant (HPP) dam burst, deputy head of the city’s administration Sergey Dmitriyev said on Tuesday.
"The worst thing about it is that our cemetery has been flooded, which will lead to a serious, large contamination of water and cause many problems for the civilian population," he said in an interview with the Radio Rossii station.
Ukrainian forces shelled the Kakhovka HPP in the early morning hours on Tuesday, presumably using missiles fired from an Olkha multiple launch rocket system (MLRS). The gate valves of the plant’s dam collapsed as a result of the shelling, causing water to pour out uncontrollably.
As of now, the water level in Novaya Kakhovka has risen to above 12 meters. Fourteen settlements have been flooded and up to 80 are at risk of being inundated. People are being evacuated from neighboring settlements. However, according to local authorities, large-scale evacuations are not necessary. Farmlands along the Dnieper have been washed away. There is a risk of the drying out of the North Crimean Canal, which feeds water to Crimea.