According to Kyiv, Russia blew up the dam in panic ahead of a planned Ukraine counter-offensive, while Russia accuses Ukraine of launching mass artillery attacks on the structure to deprive Crimea of water and provide a distraction from the battlefield.
The dam in southern Ukraine, collapsed on June 6, destroying villages, flooding farmland and cutting power and clean water supplies to tens of thousands of people.
At least 16 people are dead and 31 are missing in flooding from the Nova Kakhovka dam collapse, Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs said on Saturday, CNN reported
Since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the area around the Nova Kakhovka dam has been one of the most hotly contested areas.
A Russian-installed official said Ukraine had recaptured Piatykhatky, a village in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, and were entrenching themselves. | World News