April 26 marked the 30th anniversary of the deadly and fateful nuclear disaster at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Most of us who remember that day and the days that followed also remember our helpless reactions to the enormity of the disaster.
The Soviet Union did not acknowledge that an accident had taken place, apparently the result of an experiment gone wrong at the nuclear plant. The Soviets were compelled to admit that something was awry only after unusual levels of radiation were detected in Sweden. Thirty-six hours after the explosion at the plant, evacuations from the area began. Two days after, a terse official announcement told the people of Ukraine: “An accident has taken place at the Chornobyl power station, and one of the reactors was damaged. Measures are being taken to eliminate the consequences of the accident. Those affected by it are being given assistance. A government commission has been set up.” Four days later, Soviet authorities claimed the situation around the Chornobyl plant had “stabilized.”
On May Day, parades went on as usual. In Kyiv, only about 60 miles away, marchers – among them many children – walked down the Khreshchatyk, unaware of the danger. Communist Party officials, meanwhile, had sent their own families to Moscow – far from the radioactive plume. On May 5, when a Ukrainian American delegation (including three community activists, Rep. Benjamin Gilman and The Weekly’s editor) met with officials at the Ukrainian SSR’s Mission to the United Nations to discuss the possibility of humanitarian aid, we were told: “The main problems are solved… we don’t need any help.” On May 14 – or 18 days after the Chornobyl accident – General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev first spoke about it, stating that “The most serious consequences have been averted,” while noting that “the level of radiation in the station’s zone and on the territory in the immediate vicinity still remains dangerous for human health.”
The USSR, concerned more about its image than the people’s welfare, was telling the world that everything was under control. But the truth was far different. The authorities’ deliberate concealment of the severity of the Chornobyl disaster revealed the Soviet system’s depravity and callousness. Glasnost turned out to be a sham. Ultimately, the Chornobyl disaster contributed to the downfall of the USSR.
Now, 30 years later, Chornobyl’s consequences continue. The 18-mile exclusion zone around the stricken nuclear plant remains, and the land is uninhabitable. A new containment structure – a 32,000 ton stainless-steel-covered arch – is being built around the destroyed fourth reactor at a cost of at least $1.7 billion to enclose its radioactive remnants and eliminate the risk of further contamination. It is being built to last 100 years. Next, 195 tons of radioactive fuel must be removed, by remote-operated equipment, from inside that structure and then disposed of. Writing in the Science section of The New York Times, Henry Fountain points out: “It may take much more than another century before the mess started in a few seconds 30 years ago is fully cleaned up.”
The United States has pledged an additional $10 million for the Chornobyl clean-up and containment (in addition to the $400 million previously committed); Canada has promised $3.6 million (it has already provided $117 million). The G-7 and the European Union are also contributing funds.
The Embassy of Ukraine in the United States underlined: “It will take many more years and huge resources to finally overcome the effects of the Chornobyl disaster.” The Embassy provided these telling figures: 1,961,904 citizens of Ukraine have the status of victims of the Chornobyl disaster, including 108,530 disabled and 418,777 children; more than 35,000 families receive benefits due to the loss of a breadwinner whose death is related to the Chornobyl disaster.
As we commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster, we remember the first responders who sacrificed their lives, and all the people who suffered and continue to suffer from Chornobyl’s deadly fallout. At the same time, we hope that the many lessons of Chornobyl will never be forgotten.