Turkish, Russian workers 'killed in Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant construction'

Three workers were reportedly killed during the construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in the southern province of Mersin. According to a worker who reported the deaths, two of those killed were Turkish while the third was Russian.

Sunday November 14 2021 11:36 am

Duvar English

Three workers were reportedly killed during the construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in the southern province of Mersin, the daily Cumhuriyet reported on Nov. 14.

According to a worker who spoke to the daily on condition of anonymity, the workers, of whom one was Russian, died in the past 10 days.

One of those killed was 30-year-old Emrah Ballı, who was subjected to an electric shock due to a damaged wire inside a water tank on Nov. 10. The other workers tried to save Ballı, but he died at the scene. He was sent to his hometown to be buried the next day.

"He should have entered the water tank with the personnel chief and a work security expert," the worker told Cumhuriyet, while listing several negligent practices.

The second worker, according to the source, died late on Nov. 11 after falling from a high place.

The Russian worker was killed also after falling from a high place at the core, the source said, noting that he fell after the plywood slipped under his feet due to heavy winds.

According to the worker, construction authorities don't value the lives of those working at the site.

"There are so many neglects. They don't want the deaths to be heard by other workers. We're subjected to mobbing and they try to hide their negligence," the worker told Cumhuriyet.

An intergovernmental agreement for the Akkuyu Power Plant was signed between Turkey and Russia in May 2010. The plant's groundbreaking ceremony was held on April 3, 2018, after which construction started at the first unit. The foundation of the second unit was laid in April 2020.

The foundation of the third unit was laid with a groundbreaking ceremony that was attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin via video conference call on March 10.

As works continue at full speed, an application for the construction license of the fourth and last unit was made in May last year.

The operation start of the plant's first unit is planned for 2023 when the country will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the republic. All the remaining three units are due to start operations by the end of 2026, at a rate of one per year.