Water from rivers, wells should not be consumed: consequences of Russian attack on oil depot in Kharkiv

She spoke about this on Espreso TV.

"The catastrophe that happened in Kharkiv, when people were burnt alive, occurred on the night of February 9-10 near the Nemyshlya River. Today, the level of pollution in the Nemyshlya River is 95 times higher than normal, including the smell of diesel, and an oil film is constantly moving down the river. It is not known what will happen, most likely, all living things will die out in the river. An oil depot was built near this river in Soviet times, and oil tanks were placed on the mountain. And when the Russian Shahed drones were aiming at those tanks, a lava of fire, along with snow and dirt, rushed down the streets from the mountain. Was there any consideration for safety when building an oil depot on the mountain? It was a threat to the people who lived nearby. But there were protective structures there and everything was fine for a while," said Halyna Kuts.

According to her, most likely, one of the Russian Shahed drones was probably deliberately targeting the protective structure that was supposed to contain the leakage of oil products from the base.

"But there was a leak and all the oil products went to the Nemyshlya River, it is said that about 3,000 tonnes of oil products got there. And the Nemyshlya River flows into the Kharkiv River, which runs through the centre of Kharkiv. And the Kharkiv River already has these oil products in it, and you can smell it in the city centre. The regional administration is now appealing to all people not to use the water of Kharkiv's rivers at all, even for technical needs. These emissions are being measured on a regular basis, so it is hard to say how long this situation will last. People are warned that the consequences for human health and the earth may be remote. People who live in the private sector are also being asked not to drink water, even from wells and cisterns," said the Kharkiv Regional Council member.

Ms Kuts summarised that this ecocide is strikingly cynical given the fertility of the land in Kharkiv region, as Russian enemy plants mines and pollutes the water. That is, the invading Russian troops are now trying to destroy both people and nature itself.

• On February 9, Russia attacked Ukraine with Shahed drones. The drones were flying towards Odesa, as well as Kharkiv and Mykolaiv. Four people were injured as a result of a hit to Odesa's port infrastructure, and 7 people, including three children, were killed in the Russian attack in Kharkiv.
• A family was burned alive during a nighttime attack by the Shahed drone on a petrol station in Kharkiv, where fuel was spilled and fires broke out in private homes.
• On February 12, the Kharkiv Regional Environmental Protection Agency reported that, according to preliminary data, about 3,000 tonnes of oil products had entered the ecosystem during a nighttime attack by the Shahed drones on a petrol station in Kharkiv