On 24 February 2022, the first day of the
Russian invasion of Ukraine, the power plant
was captured by Russian forces.
During weeks of artillery attacks by Ukraine in August and September, Ukrainian and Russian officials reported that the facility's ability to transport vehicles had been degraded, but the dam itself retained structural integrity. In mid-October 2022, news reports suggested that Russians may have been planning to blow up the dam to slow down the expected Ukrainian counter-offensive in the region. On 11 November, a large explosion occurred in the northern section of the dam, shown on CCTV footage. The road and rail sections on top of the dam were destroyed, but the dam itself remained mostly undamaged. The explosion was attributed to Russian forces
retreating from Kherson. The southern bank of Dnipro and dam machinery remained under Russian control. Russian forces opened additional sluice gates, allowing water to rush out of the reservoir. At that time the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration in a statement suggested that one of the purposes of draining the reservoir might have been to flood the area south of the dam, in order to keep Ukrainian Forces from crossing the Dnipro River. Officials stated that
Ukrhydroenergo, Ukraine's hydro electric company, believed Russian forces "opened the station's locks fearing an advance of Ukrainian soldiers". In early November 2022, the spillways at the dam had been opened, and the
Kakhovka Reservoir dropped to its lowest level in three decades, putting irrigation and drinking water resources at risk, as well as the coolant systems for the
Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. Between 1 December 2022 and 6 February 2023, the water level dropped . Water levels in the reservoir reached a 30-year high. The raised water level caused some nearby villages to flood.
Destruction of the dam On 6 June 2023, an explosion caused significant damage to the central section of the wide dam, resulting in uncontrolled water flow downstream. There was an occurrence of an "internal explosion of the structures" within the dam, according to Ukrainian president
Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the
United Nations, the breach in the Kakhova Dam would have catastrophic consequences. The destruction of the dam led to tens of thousands of people being in a flood zone and more than 50 deaths. Over 40 different towns and villages in Ukraine are severely flooded and massive numbers of livestock have perished. Russia has controlled the dam since the start of the invasion, but the two sides disagree on the cause of the destruction. Russian-imposed officials in occupied Ukraine claim sabotage by Ukrainian forces. Ukrainian officials attribute the disaster to the 205th Motorized Rifle Brigade of Russia. No other national government has assigned blame for the dam's destruction, but it was reported by the BBC that both the
United States and the
United Kingdom are leaning towards an assessment of Russian culpability.
The New York Times has written that "the most likely cause of the collapse was an explosive charge placed in the maintenance passageway, or gallery, that runs through the concrete heart of the structure" and that "the evidence clearly suggests the dam was crippled by an explosion set off by the side that controls it: Russia." EU and Ukrainian leaders condemned the dam's destruction and called it a potential
war crime While Russia denies culpability, experts state that a deliberate explosion from inside the Russian-controlled dam is the most probable cause of its destruction. The
BBC used satellite imagery to look at the canals fed from the Kakhovka Dam. Four canals have been identified as drying up. This could affect the drinking water of some 700,000 people. It could affect the growing of crops such as corn, soy beans, sunflower, and wheat as well as vegetables and fruits such as melons. ==See also==