April 26 is the day to commemorate victims of the largest human-made disaster.
Ukraine marks the 35th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster on April 26.
Chornobyl nuclear power unit No. 4 exploded on that day, 35 years ago. There were two blasts with an interval of two seconds.
Several hundred workers and firefighters had been trying to put out the fire for many days. The nuclear reactor was completely destroyed by the explosion, while a cloud of radioactive dust penetrated the atmosphere.
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In November 2016, they started to build a new sarcophagus over nuclear power unit No. 4, and it was commissioned in 2019.
The accident at the Chornobyl NPP led to irreparable health, economic, social, and humanitarian losses.
Many radioactive substances penetrated into the environment. The total radiation level of isotopes released into the air was 50 million curies, which is 96.7%-97.5% more than from the explosion of a bomb in Hiroshima in 1945.
It is still difficult to determine the scale of the disaster and its impact on human health. Thirty employees of the nuclear power plant died as a result of the explosion or acute radiation sickness within the next few months after the day of the accident. Hundreds of thousands of people died from cancer alone, which had developed as a result of exposure to radiation.
It has been 35 years since the accident at the Chornobyl NPP, but its consequences remain on the agenda of the global scientific community. A 30-kilometer exclusion zone has been created around the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.
April 26 is the day to commemorate victims of the largest human-made disaster and honor Chornobyl nuclear power plant personnel, firefighters, military personnel, builders, scientists, healthcare workers who took part in the elimination of the consequences of the disaster.
In December 2016, the UN General Assembly proclaimed April 26 as International Chornobyl Disaster Remembrance Day.
Commemorative events usually take place in Ukraine on this day: people lay flowers to the respective monuments, hold memorial services, arrange thematic exhibitions, as well as meetings with cleanup workers and citizens affected by the disaster.