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The operator gives
the emergency alert. |
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Another operator
from the control room
receives the alert
from the CCTV. |
A combination of procedure violation, design faults, breakdown in communications and a lack of adequate safety procedures led to the worst nuclear accident in history. It took place during a safety test to see if the reactor’s turbines could produce sufficient energy to keep the coolant pumps running, in the event of a loss of power. But when the emergency shutdown failed, the reactor went out of control, like a giant kettle boiling dry, resulting in a violent explosion that could be seen for miles around.
The 1,000-tonne sealing cap was blown off and, at temperatures of over 2,000°C, the reactor’s fuel rods melted. The reactor’s graphite covering ignited and, in the ensuing inferno, the radioactive fission products released during the core meltdown were sucked up into the atmosphere. A cloud of potentially lethal material was blown over Scandinavia and Europe, as far away as Scotland.
31 Chernobyl staff and fire fighters were killed either immediately, or shortly after, the explosion. It is estimated that over 2,500 people in the surrounding area have died since 1986 and thousands more are experiencing health problems due to high levels of radiation produced by the accident.
Three and a half million people were evacuated from the Ukraine but over five million still live in contaminated areas. After the initial evacuation, thousands of people were brought back to Chernobyl. They fought bravely to limit the contamination in the months following the blast, many without suitable protective clothing. The reactor was sealed in a huge, concrete sarcophagus but it will take years and millions of pounds to clean up the site properly.
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* Images from Zero Hour program |
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