Russia rejects UN aid as death toll from dam breach rises

June 18 (Reuters) – Moscow has rejected United Nations offers to help residents affected by flooding from the Kakhovka dam, the world body said on Sunday, as the death toll rose and dirty water forced the closure of the beaches in the south of Ukraine.

The collapse of the Moscow-controlled dam on June 6 unleashed flooding in southern Ukraine and Russian-occupied parts of the Kherson region, destroying homes and farmland and cutting off supplies to residents.

The death toll rose to 52, with Russian officials saying 35 people had been killed in Moscow-controlled areas and Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said 17 had been killed and 31 were missing. More than 11,000 have been evacuated on both sides.

The UN urged Russia to act in accordance with its obligations under international humanitarian law.

“Aid cannot be denied to people who need it,” Denise Brown, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement.

Ukraine accuses Russia of blowing up the Soviet-era dam, under Russian control since the first days of its invasion in 2022.

A team of international legal experts assisting Ukrainian prosecutors in their investigation said it was “very likelyThe dam collapse was caused by explosives planted by the Russians.

The Kremlin accused kyiv of sabotaging the hydroelectric dam, which contained a reservoir the size of the US’s Great Salt Lake.

Odessa authorities closed the once-popular Black Sea beaches there, banning swimming and the consumption of seafood from unidentified sources.

“Odessa’s beaches have been declared unsuitable for swimming due to significant water deterioration… and a real health hazard,” the Odessa administration said on the Telegram messaging app.

Tests of the water last week showed dangerous levels of salmonella and other “infectious agents,” Ukrainian officials said. Cholera monitoring was also implemented.

Although the floodwaters have receded, the Dnipro river on which the Kakhovka dam was built has carried tons of debris into the Black Sea and the Odessa coast, causing what Ukraine called “ecocide.”

Levels of toxic substances in marine organisms and on the seabed are expected to worsen, increasing the risk from landmines accumulating on the shoreline.

“We can forget about a holiday season for a year,” Viktor Komorin, director of the Center for Marine Ecology, was quoted as saying by Ukrainian broadcaster Suspilne last week.

Reporting by Lidia Kelly, Michelle Nichols, Ron Popeski; Written by Lydia Kelly and Ron Popeski; Edited by Lincoln Feast, Chris Reese, and Gerry Doyle

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