Two power units of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (NPP) have been automatically disconnected from the network after a fire erupted near a high-voltage line, Yevgeny Balitsky, the head of the Zaporozhye regional administration, said on Thursday, adding that one power unit is still connected to the network.

"Today, as a result of a strike by the armed units of Ukraine on power lines in the area of the Zaporozhye NPP, the territory of the security zone … caught fire … The relay emergency protection of ZNPP activated, two power units were turned off, after which the Zaporozhye region was left without power supply," Balitsky wrote on his Telegram channel.

Read more: Macron, Putin discuss setting up IAEA inspectors visit of ZNPP

Russian forces have had complete control over the nuclear plant since March, but drone attacks by Ukrainian forces have regularly targeted the facility, leading Russia to request assistance from the IAEA to address security issues.

Since then, Ukraine has waged several attacks on the plant. On July 20, three Kamikaze drones belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces targeted the Zaporozhye NPP. A second attack occurred on August 5, which caused two electricity transmission lines to be cut off. 

Over 10,000 inhabitants from the region have been left without power and water due to the aggression. 

On August 16, six power line poles with connections to the Kursk nuclear power plant (NPP) in western Russia were blown up by Ukrainian saboteurs, and on Thursday, Russian Ministry of Defense spokesman, Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov, confirmed that Ukraine is preparing a provocation at the power plant during the visit of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to Ukraine that is scheduled today. 

Such incidents have triggered fears of a possible nuclear catastrophe and were the subject of an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.

Read more: IAEA is 'very, very close' to going to Zaporzhye NPP: Grossi