The destruction of Chernobyl. (latimes)
On April 26, 1986, an explosion began, nuclear fallout emanating from the infamous city of Chernobyl that would rock the Soviet Union to its core. The after-effects of that incident would have incredibly long-lasting impacts across the globe. The aftermath of the plant’s meltdown also triggered the end of the Soviet Union. The Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev would later say Chernobyl, “even more than my launch of perestroika, was perhaps the real cause of the collapse of the Soviet Union five years later.” The Soviet Union also completely mishandled the response to the cataclysmic event that would see tens of thousands eventually die due to nuclear radiation.
Parts of the reactor still leak fatal amounts of radiation to this day.
What Happened?
Unlike the nuclear disaster that struck Japan in 2011, Chernobyl was caused by human error rather than a natural disaster. During a routine check to test an emergency cooling system, workers violated safety protocols that led to a power surge. Almost immediately uncontrolled reactions caused pressure to build in reactor number 4. Massive explosions powerful enough to lift a 1,000-ton roof rocked the facility. Two people died in the blasts but the worst had only begun.
The Chernobyl clean up took many months and cost many lives. (reportageWDR)
Woefully Under Prepared
In response to the blast, firefighters rushed to the scene, completely unprotected from the skin-melting radiation. Nearly all the firefighters died shortly after attempting to stop the fires due to acute radiation. Witnesses reported the fallout as “tasting like metal.” They also described feeling pain like pins and needles in their faces. As the fires spread, automatic safety systems that should have mitigated the spread lay inert because they had been shut down for the routine test.
The deathly effects of radiation poisoning include coughing up your own internal organs.
Zero Accountability
The Soviet Union’s response to the disaster was beyond incompetent, falling into immoral and unscrupulous behavior. They didn’t even evacuate the nearby town of Pripyat for almost a day after the accident. That despite the town being established solely for the workers of the nuclear plant and their families. Furthermore, the USSR failed to even notify nearby countries. It wasn’t until days later when the Swedish government demanded an explanation for the unusually high radiation levels near their own plant in Stockholm that the Soviets fessed up.
Chernobyl has become a spooky tourist site today, despite the small amounts of radiation in the air. (goodreads)
“Our Bad”
It wasn’t until the 28th, two days later, when the Kremlin finally decided to broadcast the news of the nuclear fallout. Of course, when they did, they immediately followed it up with a State broadcast, detailing all the other nuclear accidents that had occurred in Western countries. Ironically, Gorbachev had just introduced his ‘glasnost’ policies that were supposed to allow for greater openness in Soviet society.
It also took further badgering from neighboring countries before the USSR finally admitted to their calamitous error. Thanks to the lack of transparency, neighboring Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, didn't close schools nor warn their citizens to stay indoors until May 6th!
The ghostly playgrounds have become famous photos in the subsequent years.
A Two-Stage Clean Up
Over the next 6 months workers hurriedly attempted to erect a steel and cement tomb to encase the damaged reactor. It’s worth noting that a containment building to surround the reactor should have been in place from the start. A former worker, Yaroslav Melnik told the BBC, “We worked in three shifts, but only for five to seven minutes at a time because of the danger. After finishing, we’d throw our clothes in the garbage.”
In 2010, an international consortium came together to build a better, more secure “sarcophagus” for the leaking reactor. Over six years the 35,000-ton New Safe Confinement was built on tracks before moving the massive structure over the existing containment building. The new confinement project was projected to last 100 years.
The immediate aftermath showed the lack of preparation by the Soviets. (allthatsinteresting)
Unknown Fallout
While roughly only 28 people died from the initial blast, the cumulative death toll is estimated to be much higher thanks to nuclear radiation. The Ukrainian government declared that 125,000 people perished due to Chernobyl’s radiation. A 2005 United Nations report stated that up to 9,000 people could eventually die due to exposure.
The total death toll from Chernobyl remains unknown.
A Radioactive Animal Sanctuary
A 770-mile Chernobyl Exclusion Zone was established, prohibiting logging or agriculture due to contamination. Amazingly, the animal life around Chernobyl has flourished despite the radiation. Wildlife experts say that despite the exposure plants and animals are thriving thanks to the lack of humans...
