Drone strike kills worker at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, IAEA says
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An employee of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) was killed by a drone, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced on Nov. 9.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi "strongly condemns the deadly strikes and says they represent unacceptable attacks violating indispensable nuclear safety pillars," the IAEA said in a post on X.
In a separate incident, an employee at the nearby Zaporizhzhya Thermal Power Plant was also killed by a drone, according to the IAEA.
The IAEA did not specify whether the attack was carried out by Russian or Ukrainian forces, or provide further details.
The ZNPP, located in the city of Enerhodar in southern Ukraine, is Europe's largest nuclear power plant. It has been under Russian occupation since the start of their full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While Moscow controls the plant and large parts of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the regional capital of Zaporizhzhia and most of the oblast's population remain under Ukrainian administration.
The plant has repeatedly faced threats to nuclear safety, including drone attacks, disruptions to external power supplies, and incidents affecting plant workers.
On Nov. 8, the ZNPP lost connection to its sole 330-kilovolt (kV) external power line for around 10 hours, forcing it to rely on emergency diesel generators for cooling and safety functions before power was restored.
Another drone attack on Oct. 29 killed an employee. The victim was reportedly a welder working at the plant's centralized repair workshop, according to the United Nations nuclear watchdog.
On Oct. 3, the IAEA reported a series of drone attacks that damaged transformers at the Zaporizhzhia Thermal Power Plant, threatening the nuclear facility's external electricity supply.
In August, a drone explosion at a bus stop used by plant personnel killed one person and injured 15 others, according to the IAEA.
