Fears of radiation leak mount near Ukrainian nuclear plant; authorities handing out iodine tablets

Authorities began distributing iodine tablets to residents near Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Friday in case of a radiation leak, amid mounting fears that the fighting around the complex could trigger a catastrophe.

The move came a day after the plant was temporarily knocked offline because of what officials said was fire damage to a transmission line. The incident heightened dread of a nuclear disaster in a country still haunted by the 1986 explosion at Chernobyl.

Continued shelling was reported in the area overnight, and satellite images from Planet Labs showed fires burning around the complex – Europe’s biggest nuclear plant – over the last several days.

Iodine tablets, which help block the absorption of radioactive iodine by the thyroid gland in a nuclear accident, were issued in the city of Zaporizhzhia, which is about 45 km (27 miles) from the plant and remains under Ukrainian control. A woman and her small daughter were among those receiving the pills.

The United Nations’ atomic energy agency has been trying to send a team in to inspect and help secure the plant. Officials said preparations for the trip were under way, but it remained unclear when it might take place.

The Zaporizhzhia plant has been occupied by Russian forces and run by Ukrainian workers since the early days of the six-month-old war. The two sides have repeatedly accused each other of shelling the site.

In Thursday’s incident, Ukraine and Russia blamed one another for the transmission-line damage that knocked the plant off the power grid.