39 years since the Chernobyl disaster
a chronicle of the tragedy that changed the world. The accident was described by the United Nations as "the greatest ecological disaster in human history."
Today marks 39 years since the tragic accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, when, following two explosions, massive amounts of radioactive substances were released into the air.
The explosion occurred on April 26, 1986, at 1:23 AM, and within less than two days, the cloud carrying radioactive particles, 200 times more powerful than the atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, covered all of Northern Europe.
At the beginning of a full-scale war against Ukraine, Russian troops entered the territory of the Chernobyl power plant and began its occupation, lasting from February 24 to March 31, 2022. On February 13, 2025, a Russian drone crashed into the sarcophagus of the Chernobyl power plant, severely damaging its shell.