On June 6, 2023, around three o'clock, the Russian military blew up the dam of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power plant in the Kherson region. It was the fifth largest hydroelectric power plant in Ukraine. By destroying it, the Russian invaders caused the largest man-made disaster on our continent since the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Today, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers publishes photos of Konstantin and Vlada Liberov and Daniel Pavlov, taken in flooded Kherson in the first hours and days after the explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant by the Russians.
Houses, fields and settlements were under water, especially on the low left bank of the Dnieper in Kherson region. As a result of the explosion of the dam of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power plant in the territories controlled by Ukraine, 33 people were killed and 28 were injured. More than 40 people are still missing. The UN International Commission for the Investigation of Violations in Ukraine received information about the dead and injured from the Ukrainian government.
Representatives of the Russian Federation have not yet responded to requests from UN investigators about the consequences of blowing up the dam. However, the Associated Press has own investigation. According to journalists, hundreds of people were killed as a result of the destruction of the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and floods, far more than the number claimed by the Russian-controlled occupation authorities. In addition, in ten settlements on the temporarily occupied left bank of the Dnieper, the Russians refused to evacuate people and prohibited them from leaving for the annexed Crimea on their own. In Nova Kakhovka, the local zoo was flooded - most of the animals died. It is still impossible to accurately assess the consequences of the disaster.
That morning, photographer Danilo Pavlov woke up earlier than planned. At 5 o'clock in the morning, as usual, he opened the news feed, but what he read made him grab out of bed.
“I immediately began to think who to call and how to act,” recalls Danylo. “At 8 o'clock in the morning it was decided to go to Kherson. While I took everyone: photographer Sergey Korovayny, Sergey Polezhak and journalist Miroslav Lajuk, we left Kyiv at about 11-12 o'clock.”
Around the same time, the couple of photographers Vlad and Konstantin Liberov went to Kherson. They quickly completed the planned shooting in a Kiev hospital in order to document the aftermath of the explosion in Kherson.
“In the morning of June 6, we went to the hospital, because from the first news it was not yet clear the scale of the disaster. Somewhere at 8 o'clock, when it became known that water was starting to enter Kherson, we decided to go there immediately,” says Vlada.
At about 17 o'clock Kostya and Vlada were already in the city. In some places, the water was already around the neck.
“We were walking on the water and people were looking out of the windows. They sat on the porch and waited for the water to subside. No one thought that the water would rise to such a level, and did not believe that it would flood the city so much,” Vlada recalls.
Vlada and Kostya did not even have time to put on body armor and helmets, as the Russians began shelling the city.
“To be honest, we didn't expect it. I was struck by the maximum inhumanity of our enemy. Not only did the Russians flood the city and carry out one of the largest ecocides in decades, but they continue to shell civilians. Then it flew to the residential quarter. People were screaming. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the situation was very tense.”
Daniel and his team spent the first night in Kherson in a private courtyard, spending the night in the open air near one of the houses, which did not flood.
“Korovayny made an agreement with some acquaintances — and we spent the night near a house from which we did not even have keys. Our neighbor let us in. On the first evening in Kherson, we managed to remove only the places where the water reached, and the woman measuring it. The next morning we woke up at 6:30 and went looking for places where the water was coming. That's where I actually made this picture with the dog, which everyone reposted.”
A photo in which a frightened dog with his paws hugs the leg of his rescuer was distributed on social networks by a popular Hollywood actress, star of the series “All women witches“Shannen Doherty.
“Maybe that's why this shot has become so iconic. After its distribution, this photo was taken by various organizations and requested by different people. I was written with questions: “How to help and where to donate?” Apparently, in this case, the function of the photo was successfully fulfilled: facilitating help”, — says Danylo.
This picture was also published by Ukrainian stars and influencers. The photo was able to draw attention to the disaster. So hundreds of volunteers with boats rushed to rescue the animals. Images of animals flew through the front pages of the world's media and became one of the symbols of this man-made disaster.
“For some reason, sometimes the grief in which animals find themselves attracts more attention than the grief in which people find themselves,” concludes Danylo Pavlov.
Ship Island is located in the center of Kherson between the right bank, controlled by Ukrainian forces, and the left, which was temporarily occupied by the Russians. There, Kherson residents wake up to the sounds of the Russian canon, listen to the whistling of mines overhead during the day and subsequently fall asleep to the accompaniment of “Grad” and “shahedeen”. However, on June 6, water was added to the troubles of the Kherson people.
“President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Kherson. I remember how then the shelling of the city immediately began. Several times we hid in this Ship Square — just lay there under the yards of houses. Shelling in Kherson is always scary, because ordinary artillery arrives there.”
On the second day after the dam was blown up, Daniel and his team came under fire.
“On the water we met volunteers who came from Kyiv region to save animals on their own. They had a boat, we went up to them and suddenly heard a whistle. We decided to swim to one house, which then flew by. We dropped the vests because there was information that someone drowned in it, but covered themselves during the shelling.” — says Danylo.
Danylo filmed the evacuation of people and the work of the humanitarian mission.
“We swam across this big water, where there was an evacuation point — on the boats of the State Emergency Service carried people.” — says Danylo.
“This is the largest man-made disaster since the Chernobyl accident. The Russians completely destroyed the station. Look at the number of square kilometers of territory that was under water: what it led to and how the war affects the ecology. You realize the scale of the disaster when you see an entire neighborhood floating around. It also seems to me that this event was not communicated properly and perhaps informatively we even lost. Because some Western media wrote that it may not have been the Russians who blew up the dam,” says Danylo.
Big water came more and more to Kherson and the surrounding villages, taking with it everything that happened on its way. To the Black Sea, water from the dam carried entire houses, businesses, cemeteries, farms, etc.
On the second day after the dam was blown up, there were already significantly more volunteers with boats in the city. Volunteers, military, medics, journalists and locals came together to help each other.
“It was just incredible. Kostya made a very epic shot of the military taking two girls away on a boat. Such a contrast: the city, the water, the pretty guys in uniform and the same pretty girls. They smiled. People saved themselves and saved their animals. We even filmed how the woman saved the goat. It was very, very moving. However, the next day there was shelling again, and a day later too. There were injured, dead. The enemy did not stop shelling the city, did not take breaks,” Vlada said.
Danylo Pavlov met twin volunteers Boris and Yuri Knyazhinsky in Kherson, who saved people and animals on their boat. Completely unaware of the depth and direction of the current, without personal protective equipment, in the rain and under enemy bullets, the guys rescued people trapped in the water. The photographer notes the friendly atmosphere that reigned in Kherson until the water arrived.
“Near the Ship Square, the men and women who made coffee were just handing it out to everyone. Ordinary instant coffee and a little sugar. The people of Kherson have endured a lot, and I dream that the front line will move and this great and very beautiful city will finally cease to be in such danger.” — says Danylo Pavlov.
Mstislav Chernov — Ukrainian photographer, journalist of the Associated Press, director, war correspondent, President of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, honorary member of “Ukrainian PEN” and writer. He covered the Revolution of Dignity, the War in Eastern Ukraine, the aftermath of the downing of the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777, the Syrian Civil War, the Battle of Mosul in Iraq, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, including the blockade of Mariupol. For this work he received Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award, Georgy Gongadze Award, Knight International Journalism Awards, Biagio Agnes Award, Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Award, Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award, Free Media Awards, as a result of 2022 he was included in the ratings “People of NV 2022 in the Year of War” and “14 Songs, Photos and Artworks objects that became symbols of Ukrainian resistance” from Forbes Ukraine, and video footage from Mariupol became the basis of the film “20 Days in Mariupol”.
Photographer's social networks: Facebook, Instagram
Danylo Pavlov— photojournalist since 2009, worked in the regional media of Donetsk, and later in the media holding “Segodnya” and the UNIAN agency. He also worked as a commercial photographer for several Ukrainian companies. In photojournalism, it focuses on creating social photo stories and illustrating long-read reports. In addition to working in traditional media, Danylo also contributed to the online magazine The Ukrainians, and later became responsible for the visual direction of a separate edition of Reporters, which now exists both online and in print. Danylo continues to photograph and cover the events following the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. He reports from de-occupied territories and military positions, and is currently working on a lengthy photo project documenting the impact of war on soldiers and civilians in need of plastic surgery. He also collaborates with the State Emergency Service, for which he was awarded the State Badge of Honor last year.
Photographer's social networks: Facebook, Instagram
Konstantin Liberov— Ukrainian photographer, photojournalist. Knight of the Order “For Merit” III degree (2023). One of his photos was selected by Time magazine among the 100 Best Photos of 2022. During the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, together with his wife Vlada Liberova, they filmed the consequences of the war in Kharkiv, Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, Svyatogorsk, Nikolaev, Bucha, Irpen, Kyiv and other cities. Photos of Konstantin were published by The Kyiv Independent, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Insider, The Independent.
Photographer's social networks: Instagram, Facebook
The material was worked on:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Kateryna Moskalyuk
Bild-editor: Vyacheslav Ratynskyi
Literary Editor: Julia Futei
Site Manager: Vladislav Kuhar
Read also: Life on the edge. The struggle for the city of Bakhmut in the photos of Ukrainian documentarians
The project is implemented thanks to support The Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation.
On June 6, 2023, around three o'clock, the Russian military blew up the dam of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power plant in the Kherson region. It was the fifth largest hydroelectric power plant in Ukraine. By destroying it, the Russian invaders caused the largest man-made disaster on our continent since the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Today, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers publishes photos of Konstantin and Vlada Liberov and Daniel Pavlov, taken in flooded Kherson in the first hours and days after the explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant by the Russians.
Houses, fields and settlements were under water, especially on the low left bank of the Dnieper in Kherson region. As a result of the explosion of the dam of the Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power plant in the territories controlled by Ukraine, 33 people were killed and 28 were injured. More than 40 people are still missing. The UN International Commission for the Investigation of Violations in Ukraine received information about the dead and injured from the Ukrainian government.
Representatives of the Russian Federation have not yet responded to requests from UN investigators about the consequences of blowing up the dam. However, the Associated Press has own investigation. According to journalists, hundreds of people were killed as a result of the destruction of the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and floods, far more than the number claimed by the Russian-controlled occupation authorities. In addition, in ten settlements on the temporarily occupied left bank of the Dnieper, the Russians refused to evacuate people and prohibited them from leaving for the annexed Crimea on their own. In Nova Kakhovka, the local zoo was flooded - most of the animals died. It is still impossible to accurately assess the consequences of the disaster.
That morning, photographer Danilo Pavlov woke up earlier than planned. At 5 o'clock in the morning, as usual, he opened the news feed, but what he read made him grab out of bed.
“I immediately began to think who to call and how to act,” recalls Danylo. “At 8 o'clock in the morning it was decided to go to Kherson. While I took everyone: photographer Sergey Korovayny, Sergey Polezhak and journalist Miroslav Lajuk, we left Kyiv at about 11-12 o'clock.”
Around the same time, the couple of photographers Vlad and Konstantin Liberov went to Kherson. They quickly completed the planned shooting in a Kiev hospital in order to document the aftermath of the explosion in Kherson.
“In the morning of June 6, we went to the hospital, because from the first news it was not yet clear the scale of the disaster. Somewhere at 8 o'clock, when it became known that water was starting to enter Kherson, we decided to go there immediately,” says Vlada.
At about 17 o'clock Kostya and Vlada were already in the city. In some places, the water was already around the neck.
“We were walking on the water and people were looking out of the windows. They sat on the porch and waited for the water to subside. No one thought that the water would rise to such a level, and did not believe that it would flood the city so much,” Vlada recalls.
Vlada and Kostya did not even have time to put on body armor and helmets, as the Russians began shelling the city.
“To be honest, we didn't expect it. I was struck by the maximum inhumanity of our enemy. Not only did the Russians flood the city and carry out one of the largest ecocides in decades, but they continue to shell civilians. Then it flew to the residential quarter. People were screaming. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the situation was very tense.”
Daniel and his team spent the first night in Kherson in a private courtyard, spending the night in the open air near one of the houses, which did not flood.
“Korovayny made an agreement with some acquaintances — and we spent the night near a house from which we did not even have keys. Our neighbor let us in. On the first evening in Kherson, we managed to remove only the places where the water reached, and the woman measuring it. The next morning we woke up at 6:30 and went looking for places where the water was coming. That's where I actually made this picture with the dog, which everyone reposted.”
A photo in which a frightened dog with his paws hugs the leg of his rescuer was distributed on social networks by a popular Hollywood actress, star of the series “All women witches“Shannen Doherty.
“Maybe that's why this shot has become so iconic. After its distribution, this photo was taken by various organizations and requested by different people. I was written with questions: “How to help and where to donate?” Apparently, in this case, the function of the photo was successfully fulfilled: facilitating help”, — says Danylo.
This picture was also published by Ukrainian stars and influencers. The photo was able to draw attention to the disaster. So hundreds of volunteers with boats rushed to rescue the animals. Images of animals flew through the front pages of the world's media and became one of the symbols of this man-made disaster.
“For some reason, sometimes the grief in which animals find themselves attracts more attention than the grief in which people find themselves,” concludes Danylo Pavlov.
Ship Island is located in the center of Kherson between the right bank, controlled by Ukrainian forces, and the left, which was temporarily occupied by the Russians. There, Kherson residents wake up to the sounds of the Russian canon, listen to the whistling of mines overhead during the day and subsequently fall asleep to the accompaniment of “Grad” and “shahedeen”. However, on June 6, water was added to the troubles of the Kherson people.
“President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Kherson. I remember how then the shelling of the city immediately began. Several times we hid in this Ship Square — just lay there under the yards of houses. Shelling in Kherson is always scary, because ordinary artillery arrives there.”
On the second day after the dam was blown up, Daniel and his team came under fire.
“On the water we met volunteers who came from Kyiv region to save animals on their own. They had a boat, we went up to them and suddenly heard a whistle. We decided to swim to one house, which then flew by. We dropped the vests because there was information that someone drowned in it, but covered themselves during the shelling.” — says Danylo.
Danylo filmed the evacuation of people and the work of the humanitarian mission.
“We swam across this big water, where there was an evacuation point — on the boats of the State Emergency Service carried people.” — says Danylo.
“This is the largest man-made disaster since the Chernobyl accident. The Russians completely destroyed the station. Look at the number of square kilometers of territory that was under water: what it led to and how the war affects the ecology. You realize the scale of the disaster when you see an entire neighborhood floating around. It also seems to me that this event was not communicated properly and perhaps informatively we even lost. Because some Western media wrote that it may not have been the Russians who blew up the dam,” says Danylo.
Big water came more and more to Kherson and the surrounding villages, taking with it everything that happened on its way. To the Black Sea, water from the dam carried entire houses, businesses, cemeteries, farms, etc.
On the second day after the dam was blown up, there were already significantly more volunteers with boats in the city. Volunteers, military, medics, journalists and locals came together to help each other.
“It was just incredible. Kostya made a very epic shot of the military taking two girls away on a boat. Such a contrast: the city, the water, the pretty guys in uniform and the same pretty girls. They smiled. People saved themselves and saved their animals. We even filmed how the woman saved the goat. It was very, very moving. However, the next day there was shelling again, and a day later too. There were injured, dead. The enemy did not stop shelling the city, did not take breaks,” Vlada said.
Danylo Pavlov met twin volunteers Boris and Yuri Knyazhinsky in Kherson, who saved people and animals on their boat. Completely unaware of the depth and direction of the current, without personal protective equipment, in the rain and under enemy bullets, the guys rescued people trapped in the water. The photographer notes the friendly atmosphere that reigned in Kherson until the water arrived.
“Near the Ship Square, the men and women who made coffee were just handing it out to everyone. Ordinary instant coffee and a little sugar. The people of Kherson have endured a lot, and I dream that the front line will move and this great and very beautiful city will finally cease to be in such danger.” — says Danylo Pavlov.
Mstislav Chernov — Ukrainian photographer, journalist of the Associated Press, director, war correspondent, President of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, honorary member of “Ukrainian PEN” and writer. He covered the Revolution of Dignity, the War in Eastern Ukraine, the aftermath of the downing of the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777, the Syrian Civil War, the Battle of Mosul in Iraq, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, including the blockade of Mariupol. For this work he received Deutsche Welle Freedom of Speech Award, Georgy Gongadze Award, Knight International Journalism Awards, Biagio Agnes Award, Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Award, Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award, Free Media Awards, as a result of 2022 he was included in the ratings “People of NV 2022 in the Year of War” and “14 Songs, Photos and Artworks objects that became symbols of Ukrainian resistance” from Forbes Ukraine, and video footage from Mariupol became the basis of the film “20 Days in Mariupol”.
Photographer's social networks: Facebook, Instagram
Danylo Pavlov— photojournalist since 2009, worked in the regional media of Donetsk, and later in the media holding “Segodnya” and the UNIAN agency. He also worked as a commercial photographer for several Ukrainian companies. In photojournalism, it focuses on creating social photo stories and illustrating long-read reports. In addition to working in traditional media, Danylo also contributed to the online magazine The Ukrainians, and later became responsible for the visual direction of a separate edition of Reporters, which now exists both online and in print. Danylo continues to photograph and cover the events following the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. He reports from de-occupied territories and military positions, and is currently working on a lengthy photo project documenting the impact of war on soldiers and civilians in need of plastic surgery. He also collaborates with the State Emergency Service, for which he was awarded the State Badge of Honor last year.
Photographer's social networks: Facebook, Instagram
Konstantin Liberov— Ukrainian photographer, photojournalist. Knight of the Order “For Merit” III degree (2023). One of his photos was selected by Time magazine among the 100 Best Photos of 2022. During the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, together with his wife Vlada Liberova, they filmed the consequences of the war in Kharkiv, Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, Svyatogorsk, Nikolaev, Bucha, Irpen, Kyiv and other cities. Photos of Konstantin were published by The Kyiv Independent, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Insider, The Independent.
Photographer's social networks: Instagram, Facebook
The material was worked on:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Kateryna Moskalyuk
Bild-editor: Vyacheslav Ratynskyi
Literary Editor: Julia Futei
Site Manager: Vladislav Kuhar
Read also: Life on the edge. The struggle for the city of Bakhmut in the photos of Ukrainian documentarians
The project is implemented thanks to support The Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation.
UAPP is an independent association of professional Ukrainian photographers, designed to protect their interests, support, develop and promote Ukrainian photography as an important element of national culture.
UAPP's activities span educational, social, research and cultural initiatives, as well as book publishing.
UAPP represents Ukrainian professional photography in the international photographic community and is an official member of the Federation of European Photographers (FEP) — an international organization representing more than 50,000 professional photographers in Europe and other countries around the world.
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