As Zaporizhzhya draws parallels to Chernobyl, all about the world's worst nuclear disaster

As Russian troops continue to shell Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in southern Ukraine, reports have emerged that Europe’s largest nuclear power has caught fire. Amidst the ongoing crisis, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister has warned that if the nuclear plant explodes, the destruction caused would be ten times larger than Chernobyl. In a tweet, he called for an immediate ceasefire by Russian troops and establishment of a security zone.

Here is everything about the Chernobyl Explosion

The unfortunate Chernobyl disaster, whose repercussions are felt to date, occurred at 1:23 am (local time) on April 26, 1986. It involved an accident in one of the four reactors of the gigantic nuclear power plant located in Pripyat in Kyiv Oblast, resulting in the immediate death of two operating staff. Due to absorbing high levels of radiation, 134 emergency service members were hospitalised in days ahead, of which 28 people lost their lives.

The 1986 disaster is considered the worst nuclear disaster the world has ever seen and it is also one of the only two nuclear disasters that have taken place so far, the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster that rocked Japan in 2011. 

According to World Nuclear Association, an estimated five per cent of reactor’s nuclear material leaked in the atmosphere. According to media reports, a 2,600-square-kilometer (1,000-square-mile) Chernobyl Exclusion Zone was established after the April 1986 disaster at the plant that sent a cloud of radioactive fallout over much of Europe. 

How big was the Chernobyl explosion?

The explosion released a large amount of radioactive material, not only in Pripyat but also in the neighbouring areas of Ukraine, Russia and Belarus extending as far as France and Italy. It turned about one-fifth of Belarusian farmland into a non-arable wasteland. Additionally, strong winds propelled the radioactive fallout further into West Europe and Scandinavia with the nuclear release being detected in countries as far as Sweden. Later, World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that approximately 7,722 square miles (20,000 square kilometres) of Europe were contaminated.

According to World Nuclear Association, “Most of the released material was deposited close by as dust and debris, but the lighter material was carried by wind over Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, and to some extent over Scandinavia and Europe.”

“Although plutonium isotopes and americium 241 will persist perhaps for thousands of years, their contribution to human exposure is low," the World Health Organisation (WHO) later concluded. Notably, if Zaporizhzhya NPP explodes, it could affect countries located as far as Greece and Italy. 

(Image: World Nuclear Association)

(Image:AP)