A 15 day "state of environmental alert" in the Dniester River basin was ordered on Monday and water supplies have been cut in several districts.

The fuel spill is thought to have been caused by a Russian attack on the Dniester hydroelectric plant in Ukraine on March 7.

"Moldova strongly condemns this attack, which caused oil spills into the Dniester river, posing major risks to the environment and the security of Moldova's water supply," the foreign ministry said in a press release.

Russian Ambassador Oleg Ozerov was shown a bottle of water from the Dniester at the ministry. A photo posted on Facebook of the meeting showed a glass bottle with murky water.

With the Dniester river supplying water to approximately 80 percent of Moldova's population of 2.4 million, water supply from the river has been suspended in several northern localities, including Balti, the second biggest town.

Balti residents lined up on Monday at fountains and water trucks sent by the government.

Moldovan authorities also announced on Tuesday that new fragments of a crashed drone were found in the southeast, in the village of Tudora, close to the border with Ukraine.

"The drone is active and contains an explosive device," police wrote on Telegram.

Residents near the area were evacuated and a controlled detonation will be carried out, police added, without mentioning how many people were affected.

According to images posted online by the country's defence ministry, the drone crashed in a field.

Moldova has frequently had its airspace breached with several drones crashing on its soil following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

ani/jza/tw

Meta