KYIV, April 7 – A leak of mineral fertilizers occurred in Kremenets district of Ternopil region on Tuesday night caused an increase in the ammonia content in groundwater, leading local officials to provide drinking and technical water to the affected population over the next several days, Ternopil Regional Military Administration Volodymyr Trush has said.

"Late yesterday evening, unfortunately, another missile strike was in Ternopil region. The missile was shot down by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Our air defense worked," he said.

Trush said fragments of the downed rocket damaged an enterprise storing mineral fertilizers, which leaked into the soil.

According to him, the laboratory center took measurements at night, at 7 a.m., and at lunchtime on April 5. By evening, Trush said, the level ammonia in ground water had increased in Kremenets district.

A representative of the military administration of Kremenets district, the Emergency Situations Service and the State Service on Food Safety and Consumer Protection met and decided to organize the supply of drinking and technical water for residents of several settlements of the region.

"There was a recommendation today to do the following things. First, residents of the Kremenets district of certain territories should limit themselves to drinking water from wells – it can be used as technical water. The second is to ban fishing ... The third is for enterprises located along the Ikva River should do everything the necessary measures to prevent this water from getting to the river…. The fourth is to distribute drinking water to residents in settlements, so they don't have to rely on well water," Trush said.

In addition, according to the head of the regional administration, the State Emergency Service in a number of settlements will also supply tanks from which it will be possible to collect technical water.

"This situation, according to ecologists, should pass in 3-4 days without obvious effects on people," he said. (om/ez)