Chernobyl NPP no longer sending safeguards monitoring system data

The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is no longer transmitting data from safeguards monitoring systems installed at the facility, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi informed in a statement on Tuesday.

The Director-General indicated that remote data transmission from safeguards monitoring systems installed at the Chornobyl NPP had been lost, the IAEA press release said, adding that, the Agency is looking into the status of safeguards monitoring  systems in other locations in Ukraine and will provide further information soon.

The Director-General also raised deep concerns about the rotation of staff at the nuclear facility which was also the site of one of the world's worst nuclear disasters in 1986.

Director-General Grossi stressed that staff operating nuclear facilities must be able to rest and work in regular shifts, stating that it is crucial for overall nuclear safety.

"I'm deeply concerned about the difficult and stressful situation facing staff at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the potential risks this entails for nuclear safety. I call on the forces in effective control of the site to urgently facilitate the safe rotation of personnel there," Grossi said.

Earlier, IAEA had informed that the Russian forces at the Zaporizhzhya NPP had switched off some mobile networks and the internet so that reliable information from the site could not be obtained through the normal channels of communication.

IAEA had also informed that the plant management, including measures related to the technical operation of the six reactor units, is under orders from the commander of the Russian forces that took control of the site last week.

Earlier on March 4, Russian forces took control of Zaporizhzhia NPP. Ukraine informed the IAEA that a projectile had hit a training building in the vicinity of one of the plant's reactor units, causing a localized fire that was later extinguished.

Regarding the status of Ukraine's operational nuclear power plants, the Ukrainian regulator said eight of the country's 15 reactors were operating, including two at the Zaporizhzhya NPP controlled since last week by Russian forces, and that the plants' personnel were working in shifts. Radiation levels at the sites were normal, it added.