For a month, the Russian military occupied the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the site of the worst nuclear disaster in history in 1986, before handing back control to Ukrainian forces. Several Ukrainian officials denounce the lax and negligent behavior of Russian soldiers when they checked the site. “The area around Chernobyl, the Red Forest, is still the most nuclear-contaminated area on Earth,” reminds CNN, including a team of journalists could visit the factory buildings. However, footage filmed by a drone appears to show trenches dug in the forest by the military.
“Apparently disregarding security issues, Russian troops entered the site with bulldozers and tanks, dug trenches and bunkers, exposing themselves to potentially dangerous doses of radiation,” the report said. New York Times† “We told them not to do it, it was dangerous, but they ignored us,” Valery Simyonov, the engineer in charge of site security, told the US daily.
According to CNN, the level of radioactivity in the buildings occupied by the Russian military is higher than normal even today, due to particles and dust brought in by the soldiers. “They went to the Red Forest and brought radioactive material on their shoes,” a Ukrainian soldier told the US news channel. “The other places are fine, but the radiation has increased here because they lived here.” “It’s really crazy,” said the Ukrainian energy minister, the German Galouchchenko.
Also read: “Nuclear power plants are not designed for war zones”
At the time of the invasion, about 170 members of the Ukrainian security forces were taken to the basement and held there for 30 days, points to the BBC for its part who was also allowed to visit the property. They are said to have been transferred to Belarus at the time of the Russian withdrawal.
Theft of Russian fuel to run a generator
The factory’s technicians continued to work for several weeks during the occupation, under difficult conditions and with no possibility of being relieved. “We had to constantly negotiate with [les soldats], and do everything possible not to offend them so that they let our staff manage the installation,” a Ukrainian engineer told the BBC. The power was cut for three days, the manager continues, adding that he “had difficulty finding fuel for the generator, even going so far as to steal it from the Russians,” explains the British broadcaster.
Many employees denounce the looting of the various buildings of the factory in the three media. And everyone is amazed at the apparent lack of information that Russian military has about nuclear safety and the history of the Chernobyl plant.
the New York Times specifically mentions an episode in which a Russian soldier allegedly picked up a source of cobalt-60 with his bare hands from a garbage dump, “exposing himself in seconds to such radiation that it exceeded the limits of a Geiger counter.” The newspaper states that it is not known what has happened to this man since then.
Also read: The war in Ukraine will have long-term environmental consequences
