Russian forces seize control of Chernobyl nuclear plant and hold staff hostage – Ukrainian officials

Troops overran the plant on the first day of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, a spokesperson for the State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management, Yevgeniya Kuznetsovа, said.

Alyona Shevtsova, the advisor to the commander of Ukraine’s Ground Forces, said on Facebook that Russian forces have taken control of the power station and that the staff are being “held hostage.”

According to Mykhailo Podolyak, a Ukrainian presidential adviser, control of the Chernobyl zone was lost after a “fierce battle.”

Podolyak said the condition of the former Chernobyl power plant's nuclear waste storage facilities is unknown.