What is the Russian army hiding? Chernobyl ghost town scares again | Chernobyl | Ukraine War

At the time of Russia’s war against Ukraine with weapons, there was a name that was remembered with horror not only by neighboring countries but throughout Europe. One beyond the names of NATO, Putin and Selensky – the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The site of the 1986 world nuclear shock. The fact that there are only 2 more powerful plants left in that catastrophic land where the radiation of anxiety has not stopped for decades is what worries people in European countries, even Ukraine and Russia, along with the fear of war.

In April 1986, a reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded. Today, there are 15 more powerful reactors in the country. About three plants are under construction. Within days of the start of the war, Chernobyl was back in talks. The reason was that the Russian army had taken control of that abandoned plant. Nuclear fears resurfaced as power supplies were cut off.

Large quantities of nuclear waste are still stored at Chernobyl without leaks. Ukraine has shared with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it fears that those systems could be disrupted by a power outage. Ukraine’s last contact with the plant has also been lost. Russia has said it will allow Ukraine’s repair team to restore power supply in this case. This was followed by a Russian announcement that the plant’s problems had been resolved with the help of experts from Russia and its allies in Ukraine. And set up a temporary system for high-voltage power supply.

Disaster Tourism Land!

People are still being admitted to the soil of Chernobyl, which is suffering from the pain of disaster. In that ghost town where people have been abandoned, it is very safe to allow relatives or others to enter, even on Memorial Day. ‘Disaster tourism’ has also been going on in the region for a long time. As the name implies, it allows visitors to tour the disaster area with special permits and security measures.

A company from China, which finds industrial potential in anything, approached the country in 2018 with plans to build a large solar field in the Chernobyl region to store electricity. The company reasonably argued that the flat terrain facilitates the production of solar energy in all weather conditions. But Ukraine has not been able to decide even on that revenue, as the plant can only be set up if a large number of workers are brought here.

When Russia recently seized Ukraine’s largest nuclear power plant, it lost control of the IAEA. IAEA President Rafael Grozi also visited Turkey to meet with the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia due to the state of emergency, including in Chernobyl. The threat posed by Ukraine’s nuclear facilities is so worrying. This is another reason for the concerns of NATO and its neighbors over the ongoing war in Ukraine. If a catastrophe like the one at Chernobyl were to hit the battlefield, the repercussions would be severe across the European region. Its economic impact will push the world into instability.

Fear that is still covered up today

The worst nuclear disaster in history occurred on April 26, 1986, in Chernobyl following the explosion of one of the plants. The blast alone killed at least 36 people. Thousands of people were killed in the ensuing days by radiation. 1.35 lakh people living within a radius of 32 km were evacuated. At the risk of their own lives, firefighters put out the blaze and prevented further radiation. But it still took time to lower the temperature in the reactor.

The reactor, which was destroyed in the blast, is shielded like steel to prevent nuclear radiation. Fuel roads have been constructed inside and around it and it has been filled with coolant. Special computer system to check if the temperature is rising. Adjustment to lower the temperature by discharging water from the river when the temperature rises. About 100 tons of nuclear waste is ‘blasted’ and stored here. This place was part of the USSR. In Ukraine when the Soviet Union was partitioned.

At the Chernobyl accident, 27 kilograms of cesium 137 was mixed in the atmosphere. That is what heightened the horror of the tragedy the most. As a result, about 4,000 square kilometers of land will remain uninhabitable and uncultivable for generations. The Chernobyl disaster was the result of a minor mishap during the operation. Along with the operation of the nuclear plant, some experiments of the Soviet Union were carried out in connection with it. It is said that the accident was caused by a defect in it.

The Chernobyl nuclear explosion was even more shocking than the one in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It collapsed, including a large concrete shield installed for safety above the reactor. Nuclear fuel and radioactive dust were scattered all over the place. The core temperature of the reactor also rose to 2000 degrees Celsius. The severity of the accident increased as the graphite rods caught fire. The smoke from the nuclear waste spread like a nuclear cloud to neighboring countries.

But the USSR had not released information about the reactor explosion. The investigation and subsequent tragedy unfolded as the level of nuclear radiation was found to be extremely high in neighboring countries. The first suspicion about this was in a lab in Sweden. Further examination revealed the presence of abnormal radiation in the area. The investigation got there because the wind was blowing from the Ukraine region. But the Soviet Union was adamant – “there is no nuclear problem here”.

Still active, 4 stations

There are countries that have abandoned the project of power through nuclear power plants only because of the Chernobyl disaster. They turned to alternative energy sources using wind and heat. But there are 4 active nuclear power plants in Ukraine today that are more powerful than Chernobyl. All together 15 active reactors. These are more powerful than the reactor that exploded at Chernobyl. Nuclear power generates more than 50 percent of Ukraine’s electricity.

Zaporizhia is the largest plant in Europe. There are 6 reactors. Plants such as Rivne and Kmelnitsky are also active in Ukraine. In addition to the active plants, there are 4 plants under construction in the country. Many of these, like Harkiv, are in areas of conflict with Russia.

What is happening at Chernobyl now?

Russia has seized control of the Chernobyl plant, although it is currently inactive. Ukraine has repeatedly warned that the situation here is dire. But Russia says the situation is under control. The Kiev Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly said that there is a risk of a leak here. According to the agency, the systems used to cool the fuel are not working. This is because the power supply is disconnected.

Ukraine says researchers at the Zaporizhia nuclear plant, which was captured by Russia, are mentally broken by the intervention of Russian troops. Although the Atomic Energy Agency has called on Russia to refrain from taking any action that could jeopardize the safety of Ukraine’s nuclear plants, Russia’s move to go to war has caused outrage, including at the United Nations. Grosey, IAEA chief, has said that any action affecting the radiation prevention activities of the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant would be disastrous and would not compromise on security. The IAEA’s severance of ties with the plant has also backfired.

Currently, there are more than 600 Russian troops in Zaporizhia. Russia has reportedly announced that it will forever take over the operation of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Russia also opened a military storage facility at Chernobyl. There are reports that Russia will continue to control Chernobyl. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has also expressed concern. Since 1995, the international community has lent more than 250 250 million through bank security to Chernobyl. The bank also accused Russia of sabotaging the peaceful mission. Together with all of them, the people of the world, along with Ukraine and its neighbors, are praying that there will not be another nuclear disaster.

English Summary: Why Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is Creating Panic in Ukraine after 36 Years of Explosion?