5 things to know about Chernobyl as Russian forces seize Ukraine nuclear plant
Invading Russian forces have seized control of the remains of the Chernobyl power plant in northern Ukraine, site of an infamous 1986 nuclear disaster, officials reported.
The Russian military overran the power plant on the first day of Russia’s attack on Ukraine on Thursday, Feb. 24, Yevgeniya Kuznetsovа, spokesperson for the State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management, told CNN.
“It is impossible to say the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is safe after a totally pointless attack by the Russians,” Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine’s president, told Reuters.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it also had been informed that military forces have seized the power plant, calling for caution to avoid nuclear waste leaks, CBS News reported.
Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine on three fronts, “bombarding cities, towns and villages” as forces advanced toward the capital of Kyiv.
“This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter as Russian forces attacked Chernobyl.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has argued that his military forces are protecting citizens in eastern Ukraine who want to rejoin Russia, BBC News reported. Zelenskyy and President Joe Biden have rejected those notions.
“President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering,” Biden said in a statement announcing additional sanctions against Russia, CNN reported.
But Putin has warned other nations against getting involved in the conflict.
“Whoever tries to impede us, let alone create threats for our country and its people, must know that the Russian response will be immediate and lead to the consequences you have never seen in history,” Putin said Feb. 24, BBC News reported.
Ukraine, the second-largest nation in Europe by size, was part of the former USSR until it declared independence in 1991. It is not a member of NATO.
Here’s what you need to know about Chernobyl:
Where is Chernobyl?
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant is located in northern Ukraine, near the city of Pripyat on the border with Belarus. It is about 60 miles north of the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.
At the time of the 1986 disaster, Chernobyl and the rest of Ukraine were part of the Soviet Union.
What caused the 1986 disaster?
On April 25, 1986, a poorly designed experiment led to an uncontrolled chain reaction in the nuclear power plant’s No. 4 reactor, according to Brittanica.com.
An ensuing fire and series of explosions breached containment of the reactor, allowing radiation and radioactive fallout to spread across Ukraine and Europe.
Estimates of deaths in the immediate disaster range from two to more than 50, Brittanica.com reported.
What happened after the crisis?
The Chernobyl disaster was the worst nuclear accident in history, National Geographic reported.
Radiation from the accident spread as far as Europe and was detectable around the world. More than 335,000 people were evacuated from around Chernobyl.
Experts say thousands of people exposed to the disaster’s radiation are likely to die prematurely of cancer over time, National Geographic reported.
The Soviet Union’s initial attempts to conceal or downplay the Chernobyl disaster delayed evacuations and widened distrust of the government, hastening its fall, National Geographic reported.
Is Chernobyl still radioactive?
The reactor is no longer burning, but nuclear waste leaks from the steel and concrete containment lid have been a problem, USA Today reported. The plant and surrounding area remain radioactive.
Ukraine has established an exclusion zone with a 20-mile radius around Chernobyl. Most residents have been evacuated and the area remains closed to habitation.
Why is Russia seizing control of Chernobyl?
The Chernobyl region “represents the shortest path between Russian troops stationed in Belarus and the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv,” according to The New York Times.
A Russian security source told Reuters that it seized Chernobyl as a message to NATO not to interfere militarily in the invasion.
This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 4:07 PM with the headline "5 things to know about Chernobyl as Russian forces seize Ukraine nuclear plant."