Russians blew up the Kurakhove dam: what are the possible consequences
Two hours after reports about the explosion of the Kurakhiv Dam, the water level in the Vovcha River rose by 1 meter, according to the Donetsk Regional Military Administration (RMA). Flooding has not been observed yet, but it is quite possible.
On the afternoon of November 11, reports appeared online that the Kurakhove Dam had suffered from military actions. The Russian command might have ordered the blowing up of the reservoir near the Kurakhove Hydroelectric Power Station while continuing to pressure Ukrainian positions in this section of the front in Donbas.
Kurakhove Dam — details of the explosion
The first report of Russian actions near Kurakhove and the possible explosion on the afternoon of November 11 was written by volunteer of the 24th AIDAR Separate Assault Battalion, Stanislav Bunyatov, with the call sign "Osman." According to him, the Kurakhove Dam was destroyed by the Russians. The fighter estimates that the water may move in a western direction and will flood villages on the way to the settlement of Bahatyr. On the map, it can be seen that this refers to villages along the Vovcha River: Stari Terny, Ulakly, Kostyantynopil.
The volunteer emphasized that Russians are destroying "everything alive" in this area. The roads, according to him, are still passable, but there is a problem with moving armored vehicles on dirt roads.
The breach of the Terny Dam was confirmed by the head of the Donetsk Regional Military Administration, Vadym Filashkin, as stated in a post by the official, published at 16:32 in the Telegram channel. According to him, there is no flooding yet. On the other hand, in the area of Velyka Novosilka, the water level rose by 1.2 meters.
"This strike potentially poses a threat to the inhabitants of the settlements on the Vovcha River — both in Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions," the official stated.
The dam explosion near Kurakhove, in the area of the village of Stari Terny, was also confirmed by the head of the Kurakhove City Military Administration, Roman Padun, in a comment to the publication "Suspilne Donbas." According to him, the water flowed downwards to the villages located downstream. The official did not have information about the extent and nature of the damage.
Kurakhove Reservoir — features
Kurakhove Reservoir is a reservoir located on the Vovcha River, which flows into the Samara River, a left tributary of the Dnipro. The total volume is 62.5 million cubic meters (or 0.0625 cubic kilometers for comparison, the Kakhovka Reservoir had 18 cubic kilometers of water). The main purpose of the hydro-facility is to cool the Kurakhove TPP.
On the hydrographic map of the Samara River and its tributaries, you can see that the Vovcha River flows through the Donetsk region, further through the Dnipropetrovsk region, and flows into the Samara east of the city of Samara (formerly known as Novomoskovsk).
12 November 2024 г., 00:53
