Feb 24, 2022, 05:31pm
Russian forces quickly moved to seize control of the Chernobyl nuclear site after invading Ukraine, sounding alarms about the possibility of an ecological disaster like the one that occurred there in 1986.
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant is located in Pripyat. Sean Gallup poses for a picture.
The site was seized by Russian forces. Hours after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Ukrainian officials said.
The seizure set off a cascade of warnings from Ukrainian officials about the dangers of warfare near the site and Russian control of the site, with Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak saying it is impossible to say the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is safe.
The Washington Post reported that a Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser said there are storage facilities for unsafe nuclear radioactive waste in the Chernobyl zone.
The 1986 nuclear disaster, which occurred about 60 miles north of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, could happen again if Russian forces capture Chernobyl.
Russia wanted to send a message to NATO not to take military action, according to a Russian security source.
The significance of the nuclear site to Russia is well known, as the president of the Soviet Union at the time of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster said that the accident may have been the cause of the collapse of the Soviet Union.
On April 26, 1986, a reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Pripyat, Ukraine, exploded during a routine test. At least 28 people were killed in the worst nuclear accident in history. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, around 4,000 people died from cancer after exposure to high doses of radiation and another 5,000 died from less radiation exposure. The United Kingdom is 1,500 miles away from Ukraine. More than 2 million people, including around 450,000 children, continue to receive medical observation, treatment, or support because of the explosion in 1986, according to data obtained from the Ukrainian Health Ministry.
The Slate reports that Gorbachev launched a policy that supported openness and expression, which allowed anger over the government's delayed response to the nuclear disaster to spread among citizens.
The Ukrainian official says that Russian troops seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
The Washington Post reported that the Chernobyl zone was taken by Russian forces.
What happened at Chernobyl? What to know about a nuclear disaster.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
