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Russian Blunders in Chernobyl: ‘They Came and Did Whatever They Wanted’
The New York Times ^ | April 8, 2022 | Andrew E. Kramer

Posted on 04/09/2022 6:30:23 AM PDT by Timber Rattler

As the staging ground for an assault on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, one of the most toxic places on earth, was probably not the best choice. But that did not seem to bother the Russian generals who took over the site in the early stages of the war.

“We told them not to do it, that it was dangerous, but they ignored us,” Valeriy Simyonov, the chief safety engineer for the Chernobyl nuclear site, said in an interview.

Apparently undeterred by safety concerns, the Russian forces tramped about the grounds with bulldozers and tanks, digging trenches and bunkers — and exposing themselves to potentially harmful doses of radiation lingering beneath the surface.

(snip)

At just one site of extensive trenching a few hundred yards outside the town of Chernobyl, the Russian army had dug an elaborate maze of sunken walkways and bunkers. An abandoned armored personnel carrier sat nearby.

The soldiers had apparently camped out for weeks in the radioactive forest. While international nuclear safety experts say they have not confirmed any cases of radiation sickness among the soldiers, the cancers and other potential health problems associated with radiation exposure might not develop until decades later.

(snip)

In a particularly ill-advised action, a Russian soldier from a chemical, biological and nuclear protection unit picked up a source of cobalt-60 at one waste storage site with his bare hands, exposing himself to so much radiation in a few seconds that it went off the scales of a Geiger counter, Mr. Simyonov said. It was not clear what happened to the man, he said.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: chernobyl; radiation; ukraine; war
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To: fireman15

Nope - they were only issued paper suits (with paper shoes to cover their bare feet), and brooms - no gloves, no masks, no respirators - they were expendable - even the plant manager had a radioactive waste pipe running a few inches under the floor of his desk. Often they had to clean out the waste with bare hands. When asked years later if they would the do it again, they all replied ‘yes, for the motherland’.

Not saying the story is “outlandish”. The story stands by itself as a testament to the times and the Russian callous disregard for radioactivity and people.

Paper suits are extremely fragile and that they were not replenished frequently. They were expected to all die, and they knew it. Home was a barracks in the same building.


21 posted on 04/09/2022 7:29:05 AM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: fireman15

Your factual approach won’t impress those FReepers who are unwilling to see the telltale signs of yet another NYT fearmongering article.

Here’s the old tried and true rule: when an article on a science subject fails to include any data, the writer is lying.

New rule: when the sole source of a claim is from the Ukraine government, they are lying.


22 posted on 04/09/2022 7:29:16 AM PDT by FirstFlaBn
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To: Magnum44

Bullshit is strong with this one.


23 posted on 04/09/2022 7:34:20 AM PDT by NorseViking
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To: PIF

I do not know if this is the story that you are referring too... but it is an interesting read that may or may not be accurate.

https://www.ucis.pitt.edu/nceeer/2011_825-07_Brown.pdf


24 posted on 04/09/2022 7:34:40 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: FirstFlaBn
Here's the old tried and true rule: when an article on a science subject fails to include any data, the writer is lying.

Yes, the article that the thread is based on is an interesting read... but has the hallmarks of being a propaganda fluff piece.

25 posted on 04/09/2022 7:39:12 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: Timber Rattler

MAYBE he evaporated.

Try signing that death certificate!!!


26 posted on 04/09/2022 7:39:49 AM PDT by ridesthemiles
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To: Timber Rattler

Have they wiped out their own FUTURE army???


27 posted on 04/09/2022 7:40:21 AM PDT by ridesthemiles
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To: fireman15
As a retired Hazmat Officer who drilled with the military frequently the excerpts you posted smell like complete BS.

Believe what you want. The fact of the matter is that the Russians rolled into Chernobyl with all guns blazing and stayed there for a month. You think those conscripts knew any better?

BTW, I post according to FR's rules and guidelines, so I'm not about to get dinged by the mod hammer just to keep you happy.

28 posted on 04/09/2022 7:40:57 AM PDT by Timber Rattler ("To hold a pen is to be at war." --Voltaire)
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To: Fido969
So you don't think that Chernobyl's Chief Safety Officer, who is the primary source for the story, is an expert, and is just speculating. I'm pretty sure he knows what he's talking about since the site is his responsibility.

Good grief, the stupidity and denial of the obvious on this forum has grown strong.

29 posted on 04/09/2022 7:43:55 AM PDT by Timber Rattler ("To hold a pen is to be at war." --Voltaire)
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To: Timber Rattler
In a particularly ill-advised action, a Russian soldier from a chemical, biological and nuclear protection unit picked up a source of cobalt-60 at one waste storage site with his bare hands, exposing himself to so much radiation in a few seconds that it went off the scales of a Geiger counter, Mr. Simyonov said. It was not clear what happened to the man, he said.


30 posted on 04/09/2022 7:45:36 AM PDT by Ol' Dan Tucker (For 'tis the sport to have the engineer hoist with his own petard., -- Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 4)
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To: Timber Rattler

It sure has.


31 posted on 04/09/2022 7:48:16 AM PDT by Dog (..."I'm just a cook....")
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To: Abathar

32 posted on 04/09/2022 7:50:07 AM PDT by Diogenesis (Si vis pacem, para bellum)
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To: Timber Rattler

He might well know what he is talking about, but, OTOH, did the NYT accurately quote him? Did they even speak to him? Or is this article just a bunch of lies? It is, after all The New York Times, and truth isn’t exactly their stong point.


33 posted on 04/09/2022 7:50:17 AM PDT by coloradan (They're not the mainstream media, they're the gaslight media. It's what they do. )
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To: Timber Rattler

There are some on here that will call this pure BS.

They are liars. All of them.

https://healthcare.utah.edu/huntsmancancerinstitute/news/2020/08/what-is-a-downwinder.php


34 posted on 04/09/2022 7:55:20 AM PDT by crz
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To: Timber Rattler

Easy big guy. I have never been dinged for using a link to a story that was not behind a paywall. Was the link I included to the same story or not?

https://worldnewsera.com/news/europe/russian-blunders-in-chernobyl-they-came-and-did-whatever-they-wanted/

And it doesn’t even have the stench of the slimes on it.

As far as whether the story is plausible or not, parts of it obviously are. Good propaganda always has plausible elements and builds itself on a foundation of accepted stereotypes. It is the overall impression that matters. Given my experience drilling with our own military and working within a command structure... I am not really buying it. But you are free to believe whatever you want especially if it makes you feel better.


35 posted on 04/09/2022 8:02:13 AM PDT by fireman15 (Irritating people are the grit from which we fashion our pearl. I provide the grit. You're Welcome.)
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To: Timber Rattler
An article is only as credible as the writer (and their sources). Suggest you remember who published this article.

The greater risk in a prolonged electricity shut off, experts say, was that hydrogen generated by the spent fuel could accumulate and explode.

Except to deceive, why would the writer use the present tense ('say') to describe an event in the past? Here's the timeline:

9 March

The Chernobyl nuclear plant was disconnected from the electricity grid. The IAEA stated that it did not see a critical impact on safety as a result.

13 March

On 13 March Energoatom reported that transmission system operator Ukrenergo had at 18.38 succeeded in repairing a power line needed to restore external electricity supplies to Chernobyl.

14 March

At 16.45 local time the Chernobyl nuclear plant was reconnected to the national grid.

NYT still trying to milk an event from a month ago - to what purpose? To set up the new looming disaster - citing a "study" (conveniently unsourced) on a hydrogen explosion.

Do you enjoy being misled?

36 posted on 04/09/2022 8:02:36 AM PDT by FirstFlaBn
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To: coloradan
“We told them not to do it, that it was dangerous, but they ignored us,” Valeriy Simyonov, the chief safety engineer for the Chernobyl nuclear site, said in an interview.

So you think there is room for misinterpretation there? Or that digging in, handling the dirt, and breathing the dust around Chernobyl for a month is perfectly healthy?

Russian Forces Leaving Chernobyl After Radiation Exposure

37 posted on 04/09/2022 8:05:03 AM PDT by Timber Rattler ("To hold a pen is to be at war." --Voltaire)
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To: NorseViking

Have a conversation or go crawl back under your basement bedsheets.


38 posted on 04/09/2022 8:10:34 AM PDT by Magnum44 (...against all enemies, foreign and domestic...)
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To: fireman15
Heh...your no-name overseas blog site stole the original story from the Times. Not cool. Not legal.

Don't like the ugly truth, despite all photographs, satellite imagery and video to the contrary, just call it propaganda so that you can continue your fantasy that Putin is the good guy in this mess?

Ridiculous.

39 posted on 04/09/2022 8:10:55 AM PDT by Timber Rattler ("To hold a pen is to be at war." --Voltaire)
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To: Ol' Dan Tucker

🤣🤣🤣


40 posted on 04/09/2022 8:11:41 AM PDT by Magnum44 (...against all enemies, foreign and domestic...)
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