Evacuation of residents of flooded areas near Kherson is difficult

By Wednesday evening, both the Ukrainian authorities on the right bank of the Dnieper and the Russian-appointed authorities on the occupied left bank announced the evacuation of residents from flooded cities and villages. After the destruction of the Kakhovskaya HPP dam, water continues to flow. However, local residents say that they have to undertake most of the evacuation efforts on their own.

Volunteers on boats swim around flooded houses and rescue people and animals. From the territory under the control of the Russian military, there are reports that the military does not allow residents to leave the village, and those who try to leave are subjected to shelling.

A representative of the military city administration of the settlement of Oleshka, occupied by Russian troops, told Radio Liberty that 85% of the territory is under water. People sit on the roofs of houses. Mayor Oleshek Yevgeny Ryschuk reported that at least one person died, two were taken to the hospital. The local administration specified that the number of victims could be much higher, in the current conditions their calculation is impossible. According to Ryschuk, elderly people and disabled people who are unable to move on their own are in particular danger.

Vladimir Saldo, the head of the Kherson region appointed by Russia, said that there are already 4,000 evacuees in temporary shelters, and there is a reserve for another 5,500 places.

The Russian-appointed head of the city of Novaya Kakhovka, where the destroyed hydroelectric power plant was located, previously reported the disappearance of at least seven people. The village of Korsunka was completely submerged, the villages of Dniproany, Krynka and Cossack Lagery were flooded to the roof.

Ukrainian administrations report that more than 80 settlements were found in the flood zone on the right bank of the Dnieper controlled by Kyiv. On June 7, more than 1,400 people were evacuated.

The authorities of Ukraine announced that they had appealed to the International Criminal Court in The Hague to investigate the disaster at the Kakhovskaya HPP. Ukraine declared that the hydroelectric dam was blown up by the Russian military, under whose control it has been for more than a year. Russia called the incident the result of the actions of the Ukrainian authorities, but did not provide any evidence.

The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday evening sharply criticized the UN and the International Red Cross. According to Zelenskyi, they did not respond to Ukraine’s requests for assistance to flood victims.

• It became known about the destruction of the Kakhovskaya HPP dam on the morning of June 6. Due to the uncontrolled release of water from the reservoir, settlements along the banks of the Dnieper began to flood. According to one version, the dam, which is controlled by the Russian authorities, was blown up, according to another – the cause of the accident was previous damage.
• The Ministry of Health of Ukraine warns that as a result of flooding after a dam breach, chemicals hazardous to health, pathogens of infectious diseases from cemeteries, toilets and landfills may end up in wells and open reservoirs, lead to an ecological disaster in the adjacent regions and flow into the Black Sea.