Russia-Ukraine Flash Report 07 JUN 2023 16:00 PDT - Bullet Report

Kakhovka Dam and Dnipro Watershed from Nova Kakhovka/Kakhovka to the Mouth of the Dnipro River

• As of 18:00 hours local time, the Kakhovka Reservoir had dropped 2.8 meters to 14.03 meters, approximately 2.1 meters below mean and nearing the record low of February 2023
• Outflow from the reservoir has slowed, with the depth dropping 5 to 7 centimeters per hour
• As of 23:11 hours local time, Ukrainian officials reported that flooding had not crested in Kherson, but the level of flooding was stabilizing 
• Ukrainian officials have confirmed three people have died in free Kherson
• Officials with the Kazkova Dibrova Zoo in occupied Nova Kakhovka reported that 46 small animals, including parrots, chinchillas, guinea pigs, and flying squirrels, were not at the zoo and had been previously removed - they are holding out hope that larger animals at the zoo could have found ways out of their enclosures and found high ground
• Approximately 2,000 homes on the right bank (west bank - Free Kherson) have been flooded
• Ukrainian officials are continuing rescue and relief operations for people and pets, sometimes under fire
• Flooding in Oleshky and Hola Prystan got significantly worse, with numerous civilians trapped in attics, roofs, second, third, and fourth floors of buildings
• Civilians in Russian-occupied areas report Russian troops are blocking evacuees, ignoring pleas for help, and in some cases shooting at civilian rescuers and those trying to escape the flooding
• There were discussions on free Ukrainian Telegram about civilians mounting their own ad hoc rescue operations to occupied Kherson, which we did not report on yesterday because it fell into the "this can't be" - but appear to be true
• There are reports that Russian forces are shooting at small watercraft trying to cross from occupied Kherson to free Kherson
• Shelling or rescuers in free Kherson continued

Mykolaiv

• Backflow has started on the Inhulets River, causing minor to moderate flooding in settlements along the river in Kherson and Mykolaiv to Snihurivka with the threat of more serious flooding over the next two days (estimated)
• At least one recently rebuilt bridge over the Inhulets River has collapsed, and two more are underwater
• The water supply to Mykolaiv is threatened, according to Mykolaiv Oblast OVA, Vitaly Kim
• The Pivdennyi Buh River has risen 73 centimeters due to backflow caused by the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam, but there is no serious flooding in the Mykolaiv Raion

Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk

• The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed Reactors 1 through 4 and 6 are in cold shutdown, and Reactor 5 is in hot shutdown at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) 
• Director General Rafael Grossi is coming to the plant next week with a larger group of inspectors to be left behind, increasing the number of observers from 3 to 5
• Grossi specifically called for the channel between the Zaporizhzhia Thermal Power Plant (ZTPP) and ZNPP to be maintained as it is the source of water for the reserve cooling pond reservoir at the nuclear power plant - hot take - hopefully, Russian occupiers will do more to maintain it then they have the 330 kilovolt (kV) switchyard
• It was reiterated that as long as the reactors stay in hot or cold shutdown, the current supply of onsite water can cool the reactors and store spent fuel for "several months"
• To quote the IAEA, "Even though the ZNPP’s six reactors are all in shutdown mode, they still require cooling water to prevent fuel melt and a possible release of radioactive material"
• Largescale fish kills have started in the more shallow areas of the Kakhovka Reservoir as fish become stranded
• Ukrainian officials are worried this will spark a health crisis and are urging people not to harvest the fish, even if they are still alive, due to the extreme risk of foodborne illness, stressing there is no amount of processing or cooking that can make the fish safe for consumption
• Ukrainian officials reported that the pumping station from the Kakhovka Reservoir to the Pivdenne Reservoir will be dry by June 8, 2023, cutting off the water supply to 70% of the residents of Kryvvyi Rih
• Officials are appealing to residents of Kryvvyi Rih to cut water consumption by 30% to 40% immediately, and if they don't, the city will run out of water and the ability to move and process sewage in approximately 30 days
• Insurgents in Zaporizhia claim that Russian occupiers are building new dams and destroying others to create new water obstacles and that the work is visible from satellite images - there was a clear pass of central and eastern Zaporzhia, and we did not see significant changes from May 23 to June 7, but as noted there is no data in western Zaporizhia or eastern Kherson

Kyiv

• Ukraine's government has reported that requests for humanitarian aid to the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross have gone completely unanswered - no response

Kharkiv

• Drone video shows that the ammonia pipeline in the Kupyansk Operational Area was shelled for a third time, creating a significant leak

Belgorod

• Belgord region governor Gladkov's statement that there were no more Russian partisans in the Belgorod region aged as well as room temperature milk - with Russian partisans still in control of Novaya Tavolzhanka 
• Russian social media channels released a video showing fighting between Russian nationalists and Russian partisans in Arkhangelskoe, not realizing this is not the flex they think it is, indicating that partisans are expanding their positions