Today we mark 36th anniversary of the Chornobyl accident. Can a Chornobyl-type accident happen again? "No", says our director Deborah Oughton.
Night to Friday, April 26, 1986, No. 4 reactor exploded at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine (then part of Soviet Union). Large quantities of radioactive materials were spread over large areas, especially in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia. More than 300,000 people were evacuated or relocated, and over 6,000 km2 of land in Ukraine were abandoned. Large areas are still severely affected by the accident. The UN has chosen April 26 as the UN's annual Remembrance Day for the Chornobyl accident.
The war in Ukraine has caused many to fear a new Chornobyl accident. Our director Deborah Oughton adresses this concern in her interview.