New fires erupt in Chornobyl Exclusion Zone after downing of Russian drones

The State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management announced this on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

According to the statement, on May 14, following the interception of Russian Geran-2 drones, new ignition points appeared in the Opaсhych Nature Protection Scientific and Research Unit of the Chornobyl Radiation and Ecological Biosphere Reserve.

Ukraine's State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate noted that the situation is complicated by heavy smoke, fallen trees, and the difficult terrain. Heavy machinery, bulldozers, and personnel equipped with chainsaws are being used to clear access routes to the fire sites.

Remnants of Russian drones were found at the crash sites. Pyrotechnic units of the State Emergency Service continue their work.

Despite the new fires, the radiation background in the Exclusion Zone remains within normal limits, the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate said. The automated radiation monitoring system has not recorded any exceedances of the control levels of equivalent gamma radiation dose rate.

According to available data, radiation levels in the zone, compared to average monthly values, did not exceed measurement accuracy limits.

"Russian attacks once again pose a threat to the unique ecosystem of the Chornobyl Zone, where each new fire represents a risk to forests, wildlife, and territories that have been recovering for decades after the 1986 disaster," the regulator said.

On May 8, the State Emergency Service said that a large-scale forest fire covering more than 1,100 hectares was being extinguished in the exclusion zone in the Kyiv region. By May 9, the fire area had grown to 1,200 hectares.

On May 12, Ukraine's Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko stated that rescuers had managed to stabilize the situation with forest fires across various regions of the country. Fires in the Zakarpattia and Rivne regions were extinguished, while those in the Zhytomyr, Kyiv, and Chernihiv regions were contained.