MOSCOW – Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin has called for a sweeping investigation of creaking Soviet-era infrastructure following a disaster at Russia’s largest hydroelectric power station.
A water surge caused ageing turbines to explode at a Siberian dam on Monday, starting a chain reaction that sent a cascade of water into a 100m turbine hall and the four floors below it, and dumped 45 tonnes of fuel oil into the Yenisei river below. The confirmed death toll stands at 17, but most or all of the 58 people listed as missing are also likely to be dead.
“The tragic events at the Sayano-Shushenskaya power station showed with full clarity how much we need to do to improve the reliability of our engineering structures in general,” Mr Putin told a government meeting yesterday.
“A serious review of all strategic and vital infrastructure is required,” said Mr Putin, who was due to travel to the site of the disaster today.
Few of Russia’s roads, bridges or railways have been upgraded since Soviet times. The turbines at the plant were designed to last no more than 25 to 30 years, but were still in place 31 years after the dam opened. Analysts say Moscow has fallen behind its emerging-market rivals in infrastructure investment; Russia’s roads alone claimed 30,000 lives last year.
“What happens on our roads is like a report from a war zone, and the same is true of work at sophisticated technical facilities,” Mr Putin said.
Rescue workers used dogs, cranes and power saws to search for missing workers yesterday. The wreckage of the turbine was submerged in sludge that will take three days to pump out, according to the emergencies ministry.
Russian president Dmitry Medvedev ordered Mr Putin’s government to establish the cause of the incident and take measures to deal with its consequences within two weeks. He also said the government should provide uninterrupted energy supplies and prevent any price spikes for consumers in Siberia. – (Reuters)