Blyant. Papir.

Tegningen viser det ødelagte atomkraftværk, og er fra et besøg i Ukraine i 2018 – et år før værket blev overdækket af en kæmpemæssig stålkonstruktion.

Tjernobyl atomkraftværk ligger 110 km nord for Kiev. I 1986 eksploderede en af reaktorerne, hvilket medførte den værste katastrofe i atomkraftværkernes historie. En stor del af den vestlige Sovjetunion blev stærkt forurenet. Det radioaktive materiale kunne i øvrigt spores over det meste af verden. 336.000 mennesker måtte evakueres. Det radioaktive udslip var 400 gange større end atombomben over Hiroshima, Japan, i 1945.

Personale og brandfolk fik ikke besked om strålingsfaren, det samme gjaldt befolkningen i Pripjat, boligbyen for Tjernobyl-arbejderne. De blev først evakueret 3 dage senere og beboerne fik at vide, at de ikke skulle medbringe ejendele, da evakueringen kun ville vare få dage. De Sovjetiske ledere prøvede først at skjule ulykken, men det var umuligt, da stærkt forhøjet radioaktivitet blev målt uden for Sovjetunionen. 

Der er stor usikkerhed om antallet af døde. Tallene varierer mellem 9000 – den officielle rapport – og 93.000. Ukraines sundhedsministerium har angivet, at mere end 2,4 millioner ukrainere, herunder 428.000 børn, er helbredsmæssigt påvirket af ulykken.

Efter ulykken opførtes en sarkofag af stål og beton omkring den ødelagte reaktor, men den blev ikke anset for at være stabil. I dag er der opført en stor buet stålkonstruktion, der betegnes som ”den største, bevægelige landbaserede konstruktion, der nogensinde er bygget’. Konstruktionen har kostet 11,8 milliarder kroner og består af 36.000 ton stål. Den blev bygget ved siden af den ødelagte reaktor og kørt ind over værket i 2019. Den kan forhindre radioaktiv stråling i 100 år.

Pencil. Paper.

The drawing shows the destroyed nuclear power plant and was taken during a visit to Ukraine in 2018 – a year before the plant was covered by a giant steel structure.

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant is located 110 km north of Kiev. In 1986, one of the reactors exploded, causing the worst disaster in the history of nuclear power plants. Much of western Soviet Union was heavily polluted. Radioactive material was traced over almost all of the world. 336,000 people were evacuated. The radioactive release was 400 times greater than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. Staff and firefighters were not notified of the radiation danger, and nor were the people of Pripyat, the hometown of the Chernobyl workers. They were not evacuated until 3 days later and the residents were told not to bring any belongings as the evacuation would only last a few days. The Soviet leaders tried to cover up the accident but it was impossible as sharply elevated radioactivity readings were measured outside the Soviet Union. There is great uncertainty as to the number of dead. The numbers vary between 9,000 – the official report – and 93,000. Ukraine’s Ministry of Health has stated that more than 2.4 million Ukrainians, including 428,000 children, are health-affected by the accident. Following the accident, a steel and concrete sarcophagus was erected around the damaged reactor but it was not considered stable. Today, a large curved steel structure has been erected, described as ‘the largest, movable land-based structure ever built’. The construction has cost DKK 11.8 billion and consists of 36,000 tons of steel. It was built next to the destroyed reactor and drawn over the plant in 2019. It will prevent radioactive radiation for 100 years.

Bleistift. Papier.