Ukraine blames Russian-occupied dam for flooded village

Ukrainian resident Ihor Medunov wades through the water in the ruined kitchen appliances of his house, in the village of Lysohirka, in the Zaporizhzhia region.

He visited the hunting village regularly in peacetime. Today everything is underwater. Local residents of the island community and Ukrainian officials blame the Russian occupation of the vast Nova Kakhovka dam, over 100 miles (160 km) downstream, for the flooding.

With about a week to go before his 69th birthday, Medunov remembers the parties at the house. "We used to sit on bench, and now it is vice-versa: we sit on the table with our feet are on the bench," Medunov said.

There will be no party this year at this well-kept plot of land now submerged under water.

Before the war, Medunov said there would be as many as 50 people living in the recreational community during the warm months. Now, despite the May heat, there were only six.

“Such a shame! Not only there is war, now there is this flooding,” Medunov said. He said the water level started rising sharply over a month ago, sometimes by up to 30 centimeters a day, and had remained stubbornly high after reaching its current level.

The hunting village sits just 15 miles (24 km) from Ukraine's southern frontline and residents are worried because they can't shelter from shelling because the basements are water-logged.

The Kakhovka dam, one of six dams on the River Dnipro that carves through Ukraine, was captured at the start of Moscow's Feb. 2022 invasion.

The state-owned company which owns the dams, Ukrhydroenergo, blames Russia for the flooding in the Zaporizhzhia region and says the water level is a meter higher than usual at this time of year.

But it said it was unable to say what exactly Russian forces were doing at the dam because it did not have access itself.

The Russian Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a written request for comment about the Ukrainian allegation.

A Russian energy official warned earlier this month that the dam risked being overwhelmed by record-high water levels.

Both Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of planning to breach the dam using explosives, in a move that would flood much of the area downstream in what would likely cause major destruction. Russia also accused Ukraine of firing a rocket at the dam last November.

Medunov's son, 39-year-old Dmytro, said the cost of repairs would devastate his family: "Inside it's all rotten, all covered in mold... Wood, insulation. The costs will be very painful."

Dmytro lives in the regional capital, Zaporizhzhia, and visited the island every weekend until the invasion.

His visits have become rarer due to a wartime ban on civilian craft on this stretch of the river. He now has to catch lifts from police or military boats, which are currently the island's only lifeline for food and supplies.

Medunov and his wife Natalia who have five dogs plan to stay on the island rather than move to Zaporizhzhia with their son. If the water level rises further, they may move to another building, he said.

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#flood #ukraine #russia

[steveharrell]

My gosh! I feel the pain😢! The last hurricane actually caught us of guard. We never had 25 inches of water within 9 hours. My fridge had a 2 fr water mark.

[hichamalmimounitv]

Je prie le dieu pour que cette guerre s'arrête

[ThuanNguyen]

Be strong, the invaders will pay many times more than what they did to him... Slava 4

[eastafrica]

They shouldn't let the orcs see that washing machine, they will come and plunder it.

[Gnarmarmilla]

Thank you for covering this.
May God have mercy on these souls. As the First Lady of Ukraine said, they will come out of this stronger and better than they were before. If they hold to righteousness and resist the temptation to do evil, they will be “refined like gold, ” through these sufferings. That is what our creator says about these things, Jesus Christ who died on the cross for Vladimir Putin saying, “father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”
I pray these people will see justice and that the villains who did this will leave them alone and repay them

[Josefernandez-bedn]

Viva Ucrania 🇺🇦 libertad 🗽 ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[ThatScottishguy]

I thot it was Ukraine 🇺🇦 who blew the dam ??

[MasterSamson-ddii]

This not happend if Russia not invade Ukraine people all problems from Russia all side we support Ukraine from India

[victorzvyagintsev]

Just a second. A quick look at the map shows that the vilage is just south of Zaporizhzhia city. The dam controlled(partly) by Russia is way downstream near Kherson. Another dam is located upstream in Zaporizhzhia city itself...so who is to blame for incoming water, the upstream or downstream dam?

[AKrn]

Why do they build houses below the water level of a dam and expect them not to flood sometimes?

[curlysue]

Interesting with the dam just been breached.

[Jamesyahyah]

Ukraine opens one Russia shuts one, if Ukraine shuts their's Russia opens theirs problem solved

[mandelorean]

Dont worry ukraines.. ill help out,
Im bringing my fishing pole

[Yuri_Volkov]

One of the supply routes for Ukrainian troops in Avdiivka passed through the destroyed dam, from the territory of which the Armed Forces of Ukraine are shelling Donetsk. (footage of the dead and wounded residents of this city will never be shown by The San)
In addition, in the recent past, the Armed Forces of Ukraine themselves blew up several dams and flooded a large area in an effort to prevent the Russian offensive (the blowing up of the dam in Bakhmut is only one of many cases)

[matthewgibbs]

looks like the ruhr valley after the uk blew up the dams

[lilibr]

Que se puede esperar del Kremlin, destrucción es como quedará en la historia.

[gerhardtmuller]

the swallows will do well with the rise in insects around the water

[Алексей-ятэ]

Ukrainians jumped and shouted - to the Muscovite on the gilyak (to kill Russians). And now they're crying - and why us?

[LIL_APO]

Didn’t us Americans say if yall blew up that damn we would come over there

[mandelorean]

Don't know much about housing.. but these are going to be permanently uninhabitable once the mold starts.. right? Its too much, everywhere