39 years since the Chernobyl disaster: a chronicle of the tragedy that changed the world

The accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP), which occurred on the night of April 26, 1986, became the largest man-made disaster in human history. Every year on this day, Ukraine and the entire world remember the victims of this tragedy. In 2025, it will be 39 years since the disaster, the consequences of which are still felt not only in Ukraine but far beyond its borders.

Anniversary of the Chernobyl Disaster

This year marks 39 years since the nuclear disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. On April 26, 1986, at 1:23 AM, two powerful explosions occurred within seconds of each other at the fourth power unit of the station. According to expert estimates, the power of these explosions was equivalent to 300 atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima.

As a result of the accident, about 11 tons of nuclear fuel were released into the atmosphere. In the first days after the disaster, approximately 8.5 million people received significant doses of radiation exposure. About 600,000 people from all over the Soviet Union were mobilized to eliminate the consequences of the accident.

The tragic fact remains that the Soviet leadership tried to hide the true scale and danger of what happened from the world community and its own citizens. The evacuation of the population from 80 nearby settlements began only a day after the accident. In the first hours and days, firefighters and liquidators worked with virtually no proper protection against radiation.

ChNPP Before the Accident

Preserved archival photographs show what the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and its satellite city Pripyat looked like before the disaster.

Construction of Pripyat began in 1970 simultaneously with the construction of the power plant itself. The city was located just 2 kilometers from the ChNPP. Before the disaster, about 50,000 people lived there - mainly plant workers and their families. The average age of residents was only 26 years, making Pripyat one of the youngest cities in the USSR.

Today, Pripyat is a ghost town located in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. It has become a kind of open-air museum and a monument to the largest man-made disaster in history. Before the full-scale war in Ukraine, Pripyat was a popular destination for tourists from around the world. The atmosphere of the abandoned city inspired the creators of the famous Ukrainian computer game S.T.A.L.K.E.R., which gained worldwide recognition.

Background of the Disaster

Interestingly, the 1986 accident was not the first at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. This fact became known only in 2021, when documents from the "Chernobyl KGB File" were declassified for the 35th anniversary of the disaster. The published materials revealed that substandard materials and equipment were used during the construction of the station:

- in 1973 - reinforcement of insufficient strength;

- in 1976 - defective pipes, facing tiles, and bricks;

- in 1976 - defective pressure collector for the nuclear reactor.

According to the documents, from January 1978 to December 1982, 27 accidents and 87 equipment failures occurred at the ChNPP.

KGB officers of the Ukrainian SSR were responsible for industrial safety at the ChNPP. In their reports, they regularly reported serious problems: shortage of building materials and parts, low staff qualifications, equipment shortages, violations of technological standards leading to cracks and fractures in equipment, as well as insufficient attention from the plant management to radiation safety issues.

The most serious accidents before 1986 were:

- September 9, 1981 - fire at the third power unit under construction;

- September 9, 1982