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Chernobyl Children Life Line - Teesside Link |
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History of the Chernobyl DisasterOn April 26th, 1986 the World's worst nuclear power accident occurred at Chernobyl in the former USSR (now Ukraine). The Chernobyl nuclear power plant is located near the border with Belarus. Whilst testing reactor number 4 numerous safety procedures were disregarded. The reactor became out of control creating explosions and a fireball which blew off the heavy steel and concrete lid.
This resulted in such high radiation levels in the surrounding 20-mile radius that 135,000 people had to be evacuated immediately. This area is now known as "Death Valley". For the people of Belarus the effect of the explosion has been far reaching and long term. The weather conditions at the time meant that 70% of radioactive fallout was deposited on their country. This contaminated 1/5th of the land, crippling the largely agricultural-based economy and way of life. Even now the Belarusian people have no escape from the impact of this disaster. The food chain remains contaminated which has resulted in a proliferation of childhood cancers, many of which are genetically-related. The children brought to the UK by CCLL are the innocent victims of this legacy.
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Images From Belarus |
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