DNIPROGUES (ДНІПРОГЕС)

With its 61 m wide width, 760 m in length and a volume of 720 000 m ³, this hydroelectric dam on the Dnipro was the largest in Europe and the first in the USSR. It is absolutely impressive. Its construction took place over 5 years, from 1927 to 1932, employing 60 000 workers under the supervision of a team of American specialists. Multiplying the country's hydroelectric production, it fed the neighbouring cities of Zaporojia, Kryvyï Rih and Dnipro, which developed heavy industries, including aluminium production. The dam raised the level of the 37 m Dnipro, drowning the rapids upstream and thus making the river entirely navigable. Unfortunately, the construction of the plant has had a very negative impact on the cultural heritage of the region. Small villages, depositaries of centuries-old culture, as well as much of the island of Khortitsa, have been under water and, with it, important historic monuments.