Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stepped up his condemnation of Russia, following the collapse of a dam in southern Ukraine. He says Russian forces are still shelling areas that are flooded.

Zelenskyy released a video address on Friday. He said towns and villages in the Kherson region became flooded after the dam on the Dnipro River collapsed. Zelenskyy described the dam's collapse as deliberate.

He said Russian terrorists are trying to further aggravate the situation they have caused with their ecocide.

He added that they continue to shell Kherson and the communities of the region, which have already been flooded. The president noted that the Russians are even shelling evacuation points.

The Kakhovka hydroelectric power-generating dam in Kherson collapsed on Tuesday, and massive amounts of water were released. Many communities are flooded.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA, cited Ukrainian government sources as saying that about 80 towns and villages are flooded, and nearly 40,000 residents could be impacted.

On Thursday, Kherson's governor said about 600 square kilometers of the region are under water, and 70 percent of the affected areas are under Russia's control.

The Ukrainian, US, Japanese, EU and other ambassadors to the United Nations held an emergency news conference on Thursday at the UN headquarters.

It was revealed that people evacuating from Kherson came under attack on Thursday. At least nine people were reportedly injured. Some of them were medical workers and rescuers.

The ambassadors issued a joint statement strongly condemning shelling in evacuation areas. They called on Russia to cease the attacks.