Chernobyl

April 26, 1986 1:23AM. As a passenger train from Minsk passes by in the night a power surge caused explosions from within Chernobyl Reactor 4 killing one worker whose remains are still inside today. A second worker dies from steam burns. The people in the surrounding towns still asleep have no warning of the disaster taking place. Twenty eight firemen responded to the blaze without proper equipment or warning of the risks. These brave men would have all the fires extinguished by 6:35AM but be condemned to death.

April 27, 1986 2PM. The evacuation of Prypiat begins and residents are advised to take only what they can carry, leave their pets behind and get on buses bound to return in 3 days. The first responding firefighters treated for radiation poisoning are moved to a hospital in Moscow where they were quarantined unable to be visited by families and the floors of the hospitals above and below them were evacuated. They suffered an unimaginable death where a few days after exposure their skin began to burn off followed by t bone marrow burning then their organs until all 28 finally died about 2 weeks after. Even in death their families could not see or bury them and their bodies were disposed of by the Russian government.

April 28, 1986. Russian Officials finally admit the severity of the incident due to scientists in Sweden detecting high levels of radiation in the atmosphere and identify its source as Chernobyl.

In the days and weeks after the explosion soldiers moved in to begin construction of a cement sarcophagus. The soldiers and other workers were only allowed to work 15 minutes a day. The silence of evacuated Prypiat was filled with the sound of gun fire as soldiers are ordered to kill all animals and pets remaining to prevent radiation spread. Radioactive rain turns the green pine trees red and soldiers were required to cut down every tree in the forest and bury them. Wooden houses were bulldozed and buried on site.

Chernobyl today makes for a truly unique trip and eye opening experience into the Cold War and Russian policies. The first sighting on my 2 person tour was of a wild horse. Not just any horse but one of a small group of wild horses allowed freedom to graze within the 30 km exclusion zone on the land once cultivated by farmers. Inside of a pre-school is an eerie reminder of the sudden evacuation where children’s toys lay scattered around the yard and tiny shoes fall out of lockers. Books, desks, chairs, beds and all the contents inside remain just as they were left 26 years ago.

While approaching the epicenter the cone shapes of reactors 5 and 6 never built to completion pop up from the horizon. Reactors 1 and 2 can be seen across the river only finally shut down in 2000 Adjacent to them are the connected reactors 3 and 4, the site of the disaster.

From standing just 500 meters from the exploded reactor can be seen, but not photographed, the new sarcophagus under construction. This massive project was meant to already be completed several years ago but is taking much longer. The existing sarcophagus needs to be replaced by 2015 to prevent further radioactive leakage. This gargantuan concrete structure will encase the reactor and its existing sarcophagus once it is moved across the giant tracks to its new resting place.

The nearby town of Prypiat serves as a giant memorial of the lasting effects of Chernobyl in a zombie apocalypse like setting. The evacuated buildings have been left to be slowly reclaimed by nature. The dilapidated communist style buildings include apartments, a hospital, grocery stores, cinema, schools, restaurants, a hotel and everything else one would find in any other city. Situated in the center of the town are the remnants of an amusement park still waiting to be used for the first time.

Driving away from the reactor and through the 10 km and 30 km exclusion check points, ourselves and our belongings had to be checked for levels of radiation. Although a seemingly desolate place it is amazing that around 150 people have been permitted to resettle the land where they grow their own food and raise their own livestock which can never leave the exclusion zone. These people are so isolated it is easy to understand why they have no need for money but rather use moonshine as a form of payment. It is unclear what the future will have in store for Chernobyl but one thing is for certain, that the reckless actions of a power hungry Soviet Union have left a lasting impact on the land, people and history of the world.