As a result of the accident, 75 people were killed. On 19 August 2009, a mourning day was announced in
Khakassia. RusHydro declared 25 August a day of mourning at the company. A festival in the city of
Abakan on 22 August was canceled. Due to the accident, the town of
Cheryomushki banned the sale of strong alcoholic beverages.
Damage In addition to turbine 2, turbines 7 and 9 also suffered severe damage and were destroyed, while the turbine room roof and ceilings fell on and caused additional damage to turbines 1 and 3, with slight damage to turbines 4, 5, 8, and 10. Turbine 6, which was in scheduled repair at the time of the accident, received only minor damage and was the only one of the station's 10 turbines that did not receive electrical damage due to shorting of the associated transformers. Water immediately flooded the engine and turbine rooms and caused a
transformer explosion.
Transformers 1 and 2 were destroyed, while transformers 3, 4, and 5 were left in satisfactory condition. Other damage was also severe as the machinery hall was destroyed, including the roof, ceilings, and floor. On 9 September 2009, RusHydro announced the damage caused by the incident: • Turbine 6: Flooded • Turbine 5: Flooding and electrical damage • Turbines 3 and 4: Moderate electrical and mechanical damage. Some damage to the concrete structures around them. • Turbines 1, 8, and 10: Severe electrical and mechanical damage. Some damage to the concrete structures around them. • Turbines 7 and 9: Completely destroyed, with extreme damage to the concrete structures around them. • Turbine 2: Destroyed completely, including the concrete structures around it. Although smelters continue to work at their normal rate,
RUSAL warned that in the longer term it may lose up to of aluminum output due to the power shortage, and called for accelerating the construction of the
Boguchany hydroelectric power station to replace the lost generating capacity.
Environmental impact The accident caused an
oil spill, releasing at least of
transformer oil which spread over downstream of Yenisei. The oil, which spilled during the approximately 2–3 hour cutoff of river flow when all the gates of the dam were closed, killed of cultivated
trout in two riverside fisheries, with its impact on wildlife as yet unassessed. On 19 August 2009, the -long spill had reached , where it was cordoned off with floating barriers and chemical
sorbents. The oil spill was fully removed by 25 August 2009.
Financial impact Share prices Trading in RusHydro shares at the
Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange was suspended for two days. On the
London Stock Exchange, the share price dropped more than 15%. The power plant was insured for US$200 million by Russian insurance company
ROSNO, part of
Allianz group, and re-insured by
Munich Re.
Compensation The Russian government decided to pay compensation of 1 million rubles (US$31,600) to each victim's family, and 100,000
rubles (about US$3,100) to each survivor, while RusHydro decided to pay a further 1 million rubles in compensation. RusHydro also decided to buy housing for 13 families of killed workers with underage children. There are also programs to support these children in
kindergartens and schools and to provide
higher education. In addition, a special program is planned for the reconstruction and development of the Cheryomushki settlement, the main settlement where the power plant workers live.
Personnel The director of the plant, Nikolai Nevolko, was replaced by Valerii Kjari. Several people were awarded for their heroic actions during the accident. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, awarded Juri Salnikov and Oleg Melnitchuck each with an Official Letter of Commendation. == Repairs ==