Kyiv Metro halts traffic as police investigate causes of a tunnel leak.
Ukraine’s police are investigating the cause of a tunnel leak at the Demiivska subway station in Kyiv, the Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office reported on Telegram on Dec. 8.
Kyiv police spokesperson Dmytro Hryshchenko earlier told NV that police had received a report of the leak, which was duly registered.
The prosecutor's office said that the metro police department has already launched a pre-trial investigation into the flooding of tunnels on the Obolonsko–Teremkivska line of the Kyiv Metro.
The prosecutor's office disclosed that the metro police department initiated a pre-trial investigation into the flooding of tunnels on the Obolonsko–Teremkivska line of the Kyiv Metro on suspicion of official negligence causing serious consequences (part 2 of Article 367 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
“According to preliminary findings, the tunnel's depressurization and the emergence of cracks in its walls led to the flooding on the specified section of the metro," the prosecutor's office said.
During the pre-trial investigation, officials from the Kyiv Metro Public Enterprise and subcontracting organizations involved in constructing connecting tunnels between the Demiivska and Lybidska stations in the Lybid River floodplain will face legal scrutiny.
The Kyiv City State Administration announced the closure of train traffic on the blue metro line between Demiivska and Teremky stations from Dec. 9 for the repair of the connecting tunnel.
However, Kyiv Metro head Victor Brahinskyi suspended traffic at 1:45 p.m. a day earlier after new cracks threatening passenger safety were observed on the tunnel ceiling at Demiivska station following the morning rush hour.
Brahinskyi listed three possible causes of the cracks, including poor work by the general contractor, insufficient waterproofing and chemical reinforcement, the activity of the Lybid River, and geological conditions like quicksand and peat bogs as potential causes of the cracks.
Traffic restrictions are expected to last approximately six months, with alternative ground transportation duplicating the metro route in the capital.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News