The Comic-Book Evil That Destroyed Chernobyl
It's the series you have all been waiting for – mainly because it took way way way longer to write than I thought. Today we begin our two-part series on Chernobyl! There was just no way we would have been able to record an extensive script on the entirety of Chernobyl within 2 hours. So for that reason, we're splitting this into two parts. Part one will cover what caused the disaster, the explosion of the core, and the subsequent evacuation. Part two will discuss the liquidation crew, nuclear fallout, and the current state of the exclusion zone. So buckle up, and let's start talking about an entirely preventable nuclear catastrophe.
Where did the disaster occur?
Many people assume that the disaster happened "at Chernobyl." That's not true. When the Chernobyl nuclear powerplant was constructed, it was built a little more than 9 miles away from the city of Chernobyl. Adjacent to the nuclear power plant, the closed city of Pripyat was built to house the workers of the plant. Pripyat, before the disaster, with a bustling metropolis, replete with a stadium, an amusement park, five secondary schools, and a railway.
So what caused the disaster?
In essence, negligence. As the power plant was built, KGB reported gross negligence by the construction workers and foreman. This includes deviating from blueprints without the consent of the engineers, measuring grouting by eye, and assembling concrete walls without adequate reinforcement. Additionally, 3,366 person-days were lost due to numerous workplace accidents, as safety measures were rarely taken and reinforced. Even though local KGB was aware of these hazards, they continued construction.
Furthermore, nuclear experts noticed a chronic issue in the joints of the piping beneath the reactor. Defects in the connections made the pipes susceptible to corrosion, eventually leaking onto the reactor core. While negligence was also reported, nothing was done to correct these design flaws as more reactor cores were constructed. In total, there were four completed reactor blocks by the time of the accidents and two more blocks in progress (which, for obvious reasons, were never completed).
So there was some kind of structural malfunction that caused the disaster?
Well, not really. The problem comes down to the man-machine interface in the reactors. Technicians intended to run a safety test from August 25-26, 1986. While the test initially seemed to run smoothly, an unexpected power drop in the core at 12:28a on Aug 26th. Workers attempted to correct the drop by increasing the core's reactivity, but at that point, there was already xenon poisoning affecting the reaction. By 1:23:43a, the power in the core rises exponentially, leading to an eventual fuel channel rupture and explosion at 1:23:48a. Technicians and officials thought that this was simply a fire in the block, some not realizing that the core itself had blown.
This would have significant consequences for the local population, as they were not evacuated until the following day, Aug 27th.
Woah, but everyone was safe, right?
Most definitely not – or we wouldn't be talking about it. Soviet officials swiftly limited public access to information about radiation and nuclear disaster. People were closely monitored to ensure they weren't spreading "panicked and provocative rumors," official documents listing specific names of individuals warned about their actions. In addition, KGB downplayed the severity of the event to avoid panic and went as far as to increase the maximum radiation dose an individual could tolerate to avoid evacuating more people. The majority of Pripyat and Chernobyl citizens were relocated to Kyiv for the time being, though little were given support to handle the displacement.
In total, 31 people died in the immediate blast due to acute radiation, including Valery Khodemchuk, whose body was never recovered from the rubble. This would be nothing compared to what would come next.
So what did they do as a response to the blast?
Well, initially, they called out firefighters to put out the fire – though it should be noted that they did not inform the firefighters of imminent danger. They launched a cleanup effort following the explosion to manage the radioactive contamination. But that is what we'll be covering in the next episode.
Aw.
Don't worry, dear reader; we will cover it in full.
There are far more details in the podcast than what I have listed above, as this is only a sampling. As stated in the podcast, I want to list the sources that helped me develop the script. I want to express that I am incredibly appreciative of the work put in by the authors below:
Svetlana Alexievich. “Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster.” Picador. 1997. ISBN-13: 978-0312425845.
R.F. Mould “Chernobyl Record: The Definitive History of the Chernobyl Catastrophe.” CRC Press, 1st edition. 2000. ISBN-13: 978-0750306706.
28 Newly Translated Documents on Chernobyl, 1973-1991 https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/28-newly-translated-documents-chernobyl-1973-1991