8 years later, one event continues to arouse the same fears as at the time it happened: the worst accident in the history of nuclear power – Chernobyl (April 26, 1986). An accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine, then part of the USSR, completely destroyed the reactor room of the fourth unit of the plant and created a cloud of radioactive waste that passed over parts of the USSR, Eastern Europe and the Scandinavian peninsula. On the morning after the accident, there was no information about it in the surrounding settlements. Authorities are not releasing information about what happened. Children from the nearby town of Pripyat go to school or play outside. Everything seems normal. Only the large number of police and the roads covered with water and foam testify that something is not right. At midnight, the evening after the explosion, buses arrive in the city, the purpose of which is to evacuate the city’s population. They spend the entire evening waiting for a command to evacuate the city. In the morning, the radiation background decreases and evacuation is awaited. There was hope for improvement and eventual avoidance of evacuation. However, after 2 hours the radiation rises again. Finally, after exposure to radiation for 36 hours, an evacuation of the city is ordered. The story, shared many times, we read in a report to inform students on issues related to nuclear energy, by the Bulatom Association. Disinformation in Bulgaria The first official information appeared in the Bulgarian press 11 days after the accident. On May 7, a nondescript square was published on the fourth pages of newspapers with the information that “something insignificant happened” in Chernobyl. It is the information blackout that is the reason why our country is eighth in Europe in terms of radiation pollution, but first in the accumulation of iodine 131 in the thyroid glands of children and of cesium 134 and 137 in the bodies of the inhabitants. The findings were set out in a 1988 report by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Study of the Effects of Atomic Radiation on the aftermath of Chernobyl. The data were recently recalled by historian Prof. Evelina Kelbecheva in an interview for “Darik Radio”. Millions are affected by the radiation. It is estimated that over 115,000 people died from illnesses caused by the radiation. A year after the accident, milk, meat, milk and meat products reached a level of radioactivity exceeding that at the time of the accident. A second radiation peak appears. The reason is that in the fall and winter of 1986, in our country, the contaminated fodder harvested after the radioactive rains in May and June was used to feed the productive animals. Thus, through the feed, another radionuclide – cesium, which, unlike iodine, has not yet decayed, enters the bodies of people in the country through the food chain. According to some estimates, it formed about 30% of the radiation load in the first year after Chernobyl. “The authorities knew very well what was happening and even did everything for themselves, but not for their own population. This moral debility also shows the character of the regime and the nature of the people who ruled us,” commented the historian. Prof. Kelbecheva added that the Safety and Security Administration (SSA), which was solely focused on protecting those in power at the time in Bulgaria, prohibited them and their families from eating imported food. “It was a rainy spring (the day of the accident – note ed.) and by chance I got a call from Austria. They asked us how we were. They asked me what was going on. They told me that they had changed the sand for the children in the playgrounds a few days ago. We didn’t know what was going on,” explained the historian. At the same time, Bulgaria is one of the most affected countries because of the “wind rose”. Health consequences The most serious are the direct damage to the health and life of the personnel working on the site at the time of the accident, and especially to the firefighting teams. These are about 400 people, of whom 237 were immediately hospitalized. Of them, 31 died in the following days. The rest have lesions of varying severity, with 134 having varying degrees of acute radiation sickness, the Bulatom report said. The late consequences are not unambiguous – some participants died, others enjoy good health. Another category of affected persons are the so-called liquidators. This is the accepted general name of the people who worked in the area of the plant during the next few years to eliminate the consequences of the accident. Officially, 600,000 people (of which 240,000 military personnel) hold such a certificate. As a late effect, a 65% increase in cases of thyroid carcinoma was noted. The same applies to a lesser extent to the population (mainly children) in the areas around the site. Environmental consequences

The damage to the environment is mainly from the formed cloud of radioactive aerosols, vapors, gases and “hot” particles. Carried by the air currents, the radioactive cloud initially moves in a northerly direction towards Belarus, Sweden, Finland, Denmark. The Chernobyl cloud quickly grew and changed its direction to the west, then to the southwest. The most affected by it are Belarus (where about 60% of the radioactive waste falls), Ukraine, Russia, the Scandinavian countries and parts of central Europe. The radioactive cloud does not miss Bulgaria either. The increase in the radioactive background was registered by the instruments of the Kozloduy NPP as early as May 28, with the peak of pollution occurring in the days around and after May 1. The entire Northern Hemisphere is affected to one degree or another.

Social, economic and political implications

There are direct and indirect damages to the health of a large number of people. Agriculture and animal husbandry in large areas has been suspended or limited. In addition to the evacuated population from the 30-kilometer zone around the plant, a total of over 350,000 people were subsequently resettled. As a result of social upheaval and mental stress, there is a severe decline in the birth rate to the point of disrupting the normal population. According to preliminary estimates, the global costs spent by the USSR and its successors to liquidate the consequences of the accident are more than 18 billion dollars. In an intangible aspect, as a result of the accident, permanent mistrust of political power and state and local government is established.

More about the accident: Quiz for people over 40: Do you remember the day “Chernobyl”?

Nearly 5,000 square km of Bulgaria was exposed to strong radiation from Chernobyl 35 years ago.