Fires near Chernobyl make Kiev air most polluted in world

[snoop1130]

Fires near Chernobyl make Kiev air most polluted in world

 

FILE PHOTO: A general view shows the New Safe Confinement (NSC) structure over the old sarcophagus covering the damaged fourth reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine July 5, 2019. Picture taken July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

 

KIEV (Reuters) - Fires around the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant and elsewhere pushed pollution levels in Ukraine’s capital Kiev to the worst in the world on Friday, giving inhabitants another reason to stay indoors on top of the coronavirus lockdown.

 

According to Swiss monitor IQAir, Kiev had the highest level of air contamination of major world cities, ahead of Hangzhou, Chongqing and Shanghai in China.

 

Though the 1986 Chernobyl disaster sent clouds of nuclear material across much of Europe, there was no new radiation risk from the fires and pollution, Ukraine’s health ministry said.

 

“Smog has been formed in Kiev and Kiev region. It does not carry a chemical or radiological threat, the radiation background is within normal limits,” it said in a statement.

 

The city’s roughly 3.7 million people were, however, urged to remain indoors - where most are anyway due to restrictions intended to contain the coronavirus - and close windows.

 

“This smoke can cause headaches, coughs, difficulty breathing, eye irritation, inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose and larynx, as well as a number of diseases and allergies,” the ministry added.

 

Police said a huge fire was started by arsonists in the forests around Chernobyl earlier this month. It was put out this week, but new blazes broke out on Thursday evening, fanned by heavy winds.

 

Forest fires were also registered in the neighbouring Zhytomyr region, destroying some houses and causing a car accident that killed several people.

 

On Friday, the state emergency service said there was no open fire across the Chernobyl station area or in Zhymomyr, though there was some smouldering of dry grass.

 

The Chernobyl plant and abandoned nearby town of Pripyat have become a tourist draw, especially since a U.S. television miniseries about the accident aired last year. The site is currently shut as part of the nationwide lockdown.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-04-17

 

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[PETERTHEEATER]

Drat! Just when Chiengmai had captured the title.

[Andy from Kent]

Netflix has a very good 5 part series based on the Chernobyl  disaster.

Worth watching.

[Tug]

I’m not sure I’d trust Putin’s government beeing truthfull about radioactive particles beeing picked up by the fire and inhaled or ingested not good imo

[eeworldwide]

2 hours ago, Andy from Kent said:

Netflix has a very good 5 part series based on the Chernobyl  disaster.

Worth watching.

Really? What's it called? I'm aware of the HBO series, but not the Netflix one.

[sawadee1947]

I am sooo sorry.... Chiangmai is not number ONE anymore. No hub anymore...????

[johng]

3 hours ago, Andy from Kent said:

Netflix has a very good 5 part series based on the Chernobyl  disaster.

Worth watching.

Yes I eventually sat and watched the  whole series the other night, riveting and deeply disturbing to watch the effect of the radiation on the firefighters who first responded to the fire

only in 2017 did they eventually manage build a workable sarcophagus  to seal the reactor for the next 100 years..what they'll do for the other few thousand years ..well who knows ?

 

https://www.thetvdb.com/series/chernobyl

 

[johng]

18 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

“Smog has been formed in Kiev and Kiev region. It does not carry a chemical or radiological threat, the radiation background is within normal limits,” it said in a statement.

 I hope they got the good dosimeter out of the safe  this time ( from the Tv series)

[rgraham]

9 hours ago, Tug said:

I’m not sure I’d trust Putin’s government beeing truthfull about radioactive particles beeing picked up by the fire and inhaled or ingested not good imo

You do realize the area is in Ukraine not Russia?

[Assurancetourix]

9 hours ago, Tug said:

I’m not sure I’d trust Putin’s government beeing truthfull about radioactive particles beeing picked up by the fire and inhaled or ingested not good imo

What is Putin doing in a country which is not his?

 

To return to the pollution, you think it will delight the people of Chiang Mai who are still under extreme pollution, even if they have just been detroned very temporarily ...

[Tug]

1 hour ago, rgraham said:

You do realize the area is in Ukraine not Russia?

Sorry my bad when it happened it was run by the russans yes?

[Captor]

8 hours ago, johng said:

Yes I eventually sat and watched the  whole series the other night, riveting and deeply disturbing to watch the effect of the radiation on the firefighters who first responded to the fire

only in 2017 did they eventually manage build a workable sarcophagus  to seal the reactor for the next 100 years..what they'll do for the other few thousand years ..well who knows ?

 

https://www.thetvdb.com/series/chernobyl

 

That is the HBO serie! There is only one as far I can see. Same actors at least.