Fire at Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant after Ukrainian drone attack, security normal

Ukraine has launched a drone attack on Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant. The power plant caught fire after the attack early Sunday (August 24). The company's press service said the Ukrainian attack damaged a transformer, reducing the output of one reactor by 50%.

Currently, three units of the Kursk nuclear power plant are operating. Maintenance work is underway on the attacked unit. Radiation levels in the plant and the surrounding area are within normal limits.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it was aware of reports that a transformer caught fire due to military activities. "Every nuclear facility must be protected at all times," the agency's director general, Rafael Grossi, said.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that its forces shot down 95 Ukrainian drones in 13 regions last night. Kursk Governor Alexander Khinshtein warned that such attacks threaten nuclear safety and violate international conventions.

Ukrainian authorities have yet to comment on the incident, Anadolu Agency reported.

The Kursk nuclear power plant supplies electricity to 19 regions and is located about 40 kilometers west of the city of Kursk, 93 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Ukrainian troops began entering the region on August 6 last year.