The Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the surrounding area show increased levels of radiation after heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the region. This was revealed by Ukrainian officials.
Online data from the Chernobyl exclusion zone's automated radiation monitoring system shows that gamma radiation has increased 20-fold above its usual level at some points of observation. Officials from Ukraine's nuclear agency attributed this to radioactive dust rising into the air due to the movement of heavy military equipment in the region.
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant has been occupied by the Russian army since Thursday (24/2) after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the early hours of the morning. Workers at the facility, stationed there to monitor and keep radiation levels within safe limits, have been taken hostage by Russian forces.
"NPP employees are being held hostage. This threatens the security of not only Ukraine but also most of Europe," wrote Anna Kovalenko, a Ukrainian military expert, on Facebook.
Meanwhile, an outsider, Claire Corkhill, a professor of degradation of nuclear materials at Sheffield University, UK, wrote on Twitter. "The gamma radiation in the vicinity of the Chernoybl plant appears to have increased by about 20 times compared to a few days ago." However, he appealed not to misinterpret his words.
"This appears to be based on a single data point," Corkhill added in a separate tweet.
"What is interesting is that radiation levels have increased mostly around the main routes in and out of the Chernobyl exclusion zone, as well as the reactor. This tends to indicate that increased movement of people or vehicles may have disturbed the radioactive dust."
One of the most radioactive places in the world, most of the Chernobyl exclusion zone has been closed since the destruction of Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986. That year, two massive explosions inside the plant's reactor flipped the 2,000-ton (1,800 metric ton) lid like a coin. , blanketing about 2,600 square kilometers of territory with radioactive dust and reactor debris.
After the evacuation and extinguishing of a nuclear fire that claimed the lives of many firefighters, the reactor was shut down and the area was deemed uninhabitable for humans for the next 24,000 years.
Returning to the issue of Chernobyl radiation, in a rebuttal statement from Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Defense said that the radiation around the plant was within normal levels. He also claimed Russian forces were working with facility staff to ensure the safety of the area.
The fighting around Chernobyl is only a small part of Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. As Russian troops approached Kiev, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense wrote on its Twitter page, urging citizens to stay at home. The soldiers were prepared for the worst.