The sudden deafening beep of a radiation meter fills the room as a Ukrainian soldier enters. This is where Russian soldiers lived at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, and radiation levels are now higher than normal.
There is no visible presence of the source of the radioactive material in the room, but Ukrainian officials say it came from small particles and dust the soldiers brought into the building.
“They went to the Red Forest and brought radioactive material back on their shoes,” explains Private Ihor Ugolkov. “Other places are fine, but the radiation increased here because they lived here.”
DailyExpertNews was given exclusive access to the power plant for the first time since it returned to Ukrainian control.
Factory officials explain that the levels in the chamber used by Russian soldiers are only slightly higher than what the World Nuclear Association describes as naturally occurring radiation. Single contact would not be dangerous, but continuous exposure would pose a health hazard.
“They went everywhere, and they also took some radioactive dust with them [when they left]’ added Ugolkov.
It is an example of what Ukrainian officials say was the lax and careless behavior of Russian soldiers while they were in control of the site of the 1986 nuclear disaster. The area around Chernobyl, namely the Red Forest, is still the most nuclear contaminated area on Earth, with most radioactive particles on the bottom.
Ukrainian officials have released drone footage of what they believe were trenches dug by Russian soldiers in that area, which is highly radioactive. In a safe location, on the edge of that area, DailyExpertNews spotted a Russian military ration box that showed radiation levels 50 times higher than naturally occurring values.
Russian soldiers held Chernobyl for a month and are believed to have spent most of the time operating in contaminated areas.
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