I cannot tell you where we were, but you may safely assume that it was… more or less… downwind. A very long way downwind, but downwind nevertheless.
I was standing the Weapons Tech watch, and the growler rang in MCC. It was the Chief of the Watch, who wanted me to go back to AMR2 Upper Level and take an air sample. We had been snorkeling for about half an hour for… reasons. At any rate, it was only now – more than thirty minutes after we began sucking in air – that he informed me that an air sample was necessary.
Being very much a full blown second class petty officer, I asked “Why? What are we going to do if it’s positive?”
After a few choice words, I was informed in very direct term to simply go take the sample. “Aye, aye Chief,” was my typically second class petty officer reply.
Fifteen minutes or so later, I called the COW and informed him that the air sample was negative.
And for all I know, it was…
On April 26, 1986, the world witnessed a nuclear disaster of unprecedented magnitude—the Chernobyl Accident. This catastrophic event occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power station in the Soviet Union (now Ukraine), forever altering the course of nuclear energy and leaving a haunting legacy.
The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, known as the V.I. Lenin Nuclear Power Plant during the Soviet era, was constructed between 1970 and 1977. Situated about 65 miles north of Kiev, it was the first nuclear power station built in Ukraine. The plant comprised four reactors, each capable of producing 1,000 megawatts of electric power. Plans for two additional reactors were abandoned following the 1986 disaster.
In tandem with the plant’s construction, the town of Pripyat was established to house workers and their families. Pripyat contained over 13,000 apartments, schools, a hospital, and other amenities. The town bore the hallmarks of Soviet urban planning, with vast prefabricated apartment blocks and subtle architectural flourishes.
On the evening of April 25, 1986, engineers at reactor Unit 4 began an electrical-engineering experiment. Their goal was to test whether the reactor’s turbine could run emergency water pumps on inertial power. However, these engineers had limited knowledge of reactor physics. In a series of ill-fated decisions:
They disconnected the reactor’s emergency safety systems and power-regulating system.
They ran the reactor at an unstable power level.
They removed too many control rods in an attempt to increase power.
At 1:23 a.m. on April 26, the reactor’s power surged out of control. Operators reinserted the control rods, but their graphite tips facilitated an explosion that blew off the reactor’s heavy steel and concrete lid. The ensuing fire released over 50 tons of radioactive material into the atmosphere, carried great distances by air currents.
The disaster killed 31 people directly, including workers and firefighters who suffered acute radiation poisoning during cleanup. Thousands more likely died from cancer due to exposure. The Soviet authorities initially denied the event, but when Swedish authorities reported the fallout, they reluctantly admitted an accident had occurred.
In the days following the explosion, the true scale of the disaster became evident. The area around the plant remains contaminated and officially closed off to human habitation. Chernobyl stands as a chilling reminder of the risks and consequences of nuclear technology.
The Chernobyl Accident fundamentally changed nuclear safety protocols, led to the development of the New Safe Confinement structure, and influenced global perceptions of nuclear energy. It serves as a somber testament to the importance of rigorous safety measures and the potential devastation when they fail.
The haunting ruins of Pripyat and the abandoned amusement park stand as silent witnesses to the tragedy—a stark reminder that even the most advanced technology can have catastrophic consequences.
1: Britannica 2: IAEA 3: Britannica Summary 4: HISTORY
Dave Does History 
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