Chernobyl
radiation unaffected after heavy snow causes partial roof collapse,
Ukrainian officials say
Officials
urged calm after a 6,500-square-foot section of the exploded nuclear
plant collapsed under the weight of heavy snow. No injuries were
reported and nuclear levels remain unchanged following the
"unpleasant" event.
13
February, 2013
KIEV,
Ukraine - Ukrainian officials on Wednesday sought to reassure the
public that radiation levels were unaffected at Chernobyl and there
was no safety threat after a partial roof collapse at the exploded
nuclear power plant.
A
600-square-meter (6,500-square-foot) section of the roof over the
turbine hall at the fourth power block collapsed Tuesday, Chernobyl
plant spokeswoman Maya Rudenko told The Associated Press. The
collapse was caused by heavy snowfall, emergency authorities said.
Rudenko
said the affected area is about 50 meters (165 feet) away from the
"sarcophagus," a shelter built shortly after the 1986
disaster to contain radiation emanating from the exploded reactor.
Rudenko said the radiation levels were normal and there was no danger
to the public.
“The
old shelter was not affected, the new safe confinement was not
affected either," said Anton Usov, spokesman for the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The company is running the
$2 billion project to build the new shelter.
"Everybody
should be absolutely calm," Rudenko said. "Yes, it is
unpleasant, but there is no danger."
The
April 26, 1986, accident in the then-Soviet republic of Ukraine sent
a cloud of radioactive fallout over much of Europe and forced the
evacuation of about 115,000 people from the plant's vicinity. A
30-kilometer (19-mile) area directly around the plant remains largely
off-limits.
The
6,500-square-foot section of the roof collapsed into a turbine hall.
About 80 workers contracted to build the new confinement were
evacuated as a precaution.
A
new giant arch-shaped confinement is currently being constructed over
the old sarcophagus. The construction of the new shelter was not
affected by the accident, said Anton Usov, spokesman for the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which runs the $2 billion
project co-sponsored by the bank and international donors.
"The
old shelter was not affected, the new safe confinement was not
affected either," Usov said.
The
Ukrainian State Inspection for Nuclear Regulation said the roof
collapse was caused by heavy snow. The Ukrainian emergency agency
said there were no injuries or any increase in radiation from the
reactor that exploded in 1986.
Vinci
and Bouygues, two French construction companies who are contracted to
work on building the new confinement, said they had evacuated about
80 workers as a precaution. They had not returned as of Wednesday.
Rudenko
called that a standard measure of precaution and said the workers are
expected to return as soon as an investigation into the accident is
completed and the roof is reinforced in order to prevent water from
getting inside.
She
also added that Ukrainian workers at the plant have not been
evacuated or ordered to implement any additional safety measures: "We
are not wearing face masks, we have not been evacuated, which is what
would have happened had there been danger."
However,
some environmentalists expressed concern.
"Even
if the radiation level has not changed, it's still an alarming
signal," Vladimir Chuprov, head of the energy program at
Greenpeace Russia, said, according to the Interfax news agency. "If
the panels in the turbine hall have collapsed, then in principle
there is no guarantee that the sarcophagus, built in 1986, will not
start falling apart in the near future."
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