A Russian drone attack had badly damaged the confinement structure around the disused Chernobyl nuclear power plant intended to prevent the release of nuclear substances, a senior nuclear industry official said on Friday.
"The barrier which was supposed to prevent the spread of radioactive substances has ceased to function according to its original design," Oleksandr Tytarchuk, the plant's chief engineer, told reporters at the stricken plant.
Tytarchuk said the drone had pierced the outer cover of the containment vessel, completed in 2019, and exploded inside.
According to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, radiation level were thus far normal, according to an Associated Press wire report.
Ukraine has repeatedly warned since Russia invaded that attacks and fighting near its vast nuclear power plants risk triggering a potential catastrophe.
The Kremlin rejected that its military targets Ukrainian nuclear sites, while the European Union said the attack was "reckless" and showed Russia was "not looking for peace."
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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