Photos show the flooded destruction the Kakhovka dam break is causing for tens of thousands of people in Ukraine

floodwaters rush over buildings — This image made from video provided by Ukraine's Presidential Office shows the damaged Kakhovka dam near Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Ukraine's Presidential Office via AP

The Kakhovka dam was destroyed Tuesday, releasing water from a reservoir into the Dnipro River.
Photos show the destruction the floods are causing an estimated 38,000 people in southern Ukraine.
Ukraine and Russia accused each other of blowing it up. Russia controls the area around the dam.

The Kakhovka dam is located in southern Ukraine, east and upstream of Kherson.

map of dnipro river with blue shading showing large flood risk near kherson downstream of the Kakhovka dam — An infographic titled Major Kakhovka dam blown up in Kherson, flood risk in region'' created in Ankara, Turkiye on June 6, 2023. Evacuations begin due to flood risks after Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant in southern Ukraine is breached.
Yasin Demirci/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

The dam was destroyed on Tuesday, and water from the Kakhovka Reservoir it was containing began pouring into the Dnipro River.

floodwaters rush over buildings in aerial image — This image made from video provided by Ukraine's Presidential Office shows the damaged Kakhovka dam near Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Ukrainian Presidential Office via AP

Source: Insider — Video shows floods pouring into southern Ukraine's war zone after a major dam was destroyed, sparking a new flashpoint in the war

The floodwaters rushed over buildings.

The water engulfed houses.

Source: Insider

Ukraine and Russia both accused each other of destroying the dam and causing the flooding.

very high floodwaters rush over buildings — In this image taken from video released by the Ukrainian Presidential Office, water runs through a breakthrough in the Kakhovka dam in Kakhovka, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Ukrainian Presidential Office via AP

Source: Insider

But Russian forces control the area around the dam. Ukraine's president accused Russia of mining the dam in October.

Source: Insider — Mines are being swept away in the floodwaters and exploding after a key dam in Ukraine was destroyed

An estimated 22,000 people live in Russian-controlled areas that could be affected by the flooding, and about 16,000 live in areas Ukraine controls.

Source: AP

The Kakhovka Reservoir holds about 4 trillion gallons of water.

river flows over dam and floods houses — In this image taken from video released by the Ukrainian Presidential Office, water runs through a breakthrough in the Kakhovka dam in Kakhovka, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Ukrainian Presidential Office via AP

Source: Insider

The reservoir serves as a cooling source for the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, and could pose a problem if it drains too much, though that risk is low.

In this image taken from video released by the Ukrainian Presidential Office, water runs through a breakthrough in the Kakhovka dam in Kakhovka, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Ukrainian Presidential Office via AP

Source: Insider

Stephen Hall, a politics lecturer at the University of Bath, told Insider's Sophia Ankel the "humanitarian disaster" could affect people in the area for weeks to come.

The exploded Kakhovka dam from above as water rushes out. — An explosion at the Kakhovka dam has sent a wall of water downstream, flooding Ukrainian towns.
Reuters

Source: Insider — Video from Ukraine shows an entire house washed away in floods after a crucial dam was destroyed

"It will take a while for the Dnipro to go back into its channel," Hall told Insider. "People will be flooded out, homes will be ruined."

Nova Kahk — Water runs through a gap in the Nova Kakhovka dam in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Kherson region on June 6, 2023
Zelenskyy Social Media Account / Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Source: Insider

Hall also warned of the potential for waterborne diseases the floodwaters could spread.

Drone footage shows water gushing from the Kakhovka reservoir after the dam was breached. — Drone footage shows water gushing from the reservoir after the dam was breached.
Screenshot/Twitter/@ZelenskyyUa

Source: Insider

Residents downstream from the dam were already wading through floodwaters on Tuesday.

man stands shirtless in floodwaters up to his waist with his arms spread out — A local resident gestures near his house, which was flooded after the Russian troops blew the Kakhovka dam overnight, in Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
AP Photo/Nina Lyashonok

Many were forced to evacuate, bringing the belongings they could quickly pack and take with them.

distraught people wait on blue plastic seats with their belongings — People wait for an evacuation train at a railway station in Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
AP Photo/Nina Lyashonok

It wasn't just humans who had to evacuate — this man led a cow down a flooded street in Kherson.

man and cow on a rope walk through flooded street with house and trees in background — A man evacuates a cow, leading it through flooded a street on June 6, 2023, in Kherson, Ukraine, after the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant was destroyed.
Valentyna Gurova/Suspilne Ukraine/JSC "UA:PBC"/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

And this man brought a dog with him to the train station.

man in baseball hat and blue jeans sits with a dog in his lap waiting — People wait for an evacuation train at a railway station in Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
AP Photo/Nina Lyashonok

Both Ukraine and Russia sent trains and buses to evacuate residents, and no injuries or deaths were reported.

line of people get on a train carrying belongings — People board an evacuation train at a railway station in Kherson, Ukraine, Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
AP Photo/Nina Lyashonok

Source: AP

Before the dam break, the waters had risen so high in the reservoir that they appeared to be spilling over the side, an AP analysis found, with heavy snowmelt and spring rains contributing.