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“The Chernobyl disaster was a catastrophic nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukrainian SSR, which was under the direct jurisdiction of the central authorities in Moscow. An explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive contamination into the atmosphere, which spread over much of Western USSR and Europe. It is widely considered to have been the worst nuclear power plant accident in history, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster). The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles, crippling the Soviet economy.

The disaster began during a systems test on Saturday, 26 April 1986 at reactor number four of the Chernobyl plant, which is near the city of Prypiat and in close proximity to the administrative border with Belarus and Dnieper river. There was a sudden power output surge, and when an emergency shutdown was attempted, a more extreme spike in power output occurred, which led to a reactor vessel rupture and a series of explosions. These events exposed the graphite moderator of the reactor to air, causing it to ignite. The resulting fire sent a plume of highly radioactive smoke fallout into the atmosphere and over an extensive geographical area, including Pripyat. The plume drifted over large parts of the western Soviet Union and Europe. From 1986 to 2000, 350,400 people were evacuated and resettled from the most severely contaminated areas of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. According to official post-Soviet data, about 60% of the fallout landed in Belarus.

Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus have been burdened with the continuing and substantial decontamination and health care costs of the Chernobyl accident. A report of the International Atomic Energy Agency, examines the environmental consequences of the accident. Estimates of the number of deaths that will eventually result from the accident vary enormously; these disparities reflect both the lack of solid scientific data and the different methodologies used to quantify mortality – whether the discussion is confined to specific geographical areas or extends worldwide, and whether the deaths are immediate, short term, or long term. Thirty one deaths are directly attributed to the accident, all among the reactor staff and emergency workers”. – Wikipedia (Photos by Alexandr Strannik, August 1986; Source: LiveJournal)


Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters



Chernobyl Disaster – Disaster Fighters
26 Apr 2012 13:20:00