Seismologists measure vibration
Norwegians find evidence of explosion at Kachowka dam breach
6/9/2023, 4:37 p.m
A Norwegian institute maintains a seismological measuring station in Romania, among other places – and it’s apparently working. At the time of the rupture of the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine, vibrations were measured there, which are said to have come from explosions.
According to the Norwegian seismological institute Norsar, an explosion at the Ukrainian Kakhovka dam was detected at the time of its destruction. “We are certain that there was an explosion,” said Norsar boss Ben Dando. This would confirm the common belief that the dam was destroyed by a deliberate action – and not yielding due to damage from previous bombings. The institute did not provide any information about the possible trigger of the explosion.
According to the independently operating institute happened the blast on Tuesday at 2:54 a.m. local time in an area, whose coordinates coincide with those of the dam on the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine. The strength of the detonation was “between 1 and 2”. “It’s not an easy explosion,” Dando explained. The event was detected by the Bukovina measuring station in Romania, which is about 620 kilometers from the site of the explosion.
It would be the second piece of evidence that would point to an active role by Russian troops in the destruction of the dam. Previously, Ukraine claimed to have evidence that Russia arranged them. The Ukrainian secret service SBU intercepted a voice message in which a Russian soldier was supposed to admit that he was partly responsible. It is said that he belonged to a sabotage unit.
Three scenarios possible
Previously, Ukrainian, Russian and Western experts had commented on the possible cause of the dam’s destruction. A blast by Russia, negligence on the part of the Russian occupiers or fatigue from earlier shelling of the dam by both warring parties were given as possible reasons.
The Kachowka dam in Russian-occupied territory was destroyed on Tuesday night, and large amounts of water escaped. Thousands of people had to leave their homes. Kiev and Moscow accuse each other of being responsible for the incident.