#SundayFact Since Chernobyl is the talk of the town due to HBO mini TV series therefore today's Sunday facts will encompass the deadliest level 7 major accident on 26th April 1986 at reactor no. 4 of current Ukraine and at the time USSR.

Without going in to technical details of how it happened which can be studied in detail, here is actual footage from Helicopter on 26th and actual communication.

This is the actual evacuation message of 27th April the next day to leave Pripyat. 36 hours after the disaster. USSR is criticized that they took too long to assess the situation and that evacuation should've been ordered right away on first day but they underplayed it.

To stop the contamination and clean up of area, plants, animals and soil of any radio isotopes and radio active dust about 18 Billion Rubles (30 Billion US dollars) were spent in 1986 by USSR. 600,000 liquidators who participated in clean up and containment efforts were awarded

Now to the death toll estimates which vary. 31 confirmed dead on 1st day. About same number after some days due to radiation exposure, mostly firefighters. Total death toll by cancer and other diseases is estimated to be around 4,000 by WHO as most people died years later.

Soviets had a close system and such matters are not made public right away but show and few western documentaries go a bit extra to suggest too much of a coverup, truth is in between the soviet and western version. Lots of improvements world over made since then in nuclear safety

There are many good documentaries and reading material available on Chernobyl. I find this National Geographic one good. Keep in mind Nuclear technology is still quite safe but if disaster strikes effects will last for centuries.

Chernobyl is still radio active but if international tourists are taken there to see things. Abandoned buildings in exclusion zone are just like from some horror movie. There are many tour groups that take tourists there. Picture is of 1st hospital that received the victims

Reactor 4 got destroyed and the remains of the No. 4 reactor building were soon enclosed in the sarcophagus, a large shelter designed to reduce the spread of radioactive contamination from the wreckage and to protect the site from further weathering. Other reactors kept working

Reactor 5 & 6 were proposed and under construction but cancelled after incident, however plant kept producing electricity from reactor 1 and 2 and 3 with crew working. Reactor 2 got fire and damaged in 1991, damaged beyond repair. Reactor 1 shutdown in 1996 and 3 in 2000.

Here is how it happened, although I initially wanted to leave it since ample material written about it already but just posting video explanation for better understanding.

Apart from the staff mistakes who were punished for 10 years hard labor there were flaws in reactor procedure which despite flaws should have instantly shut it down but didn't.

Despite the disaster which was first of its kind at the time, many nuclear improvements, safety measures, IAEA regulations, staff and emergency dealing procedures were improved. Nuclear energy is not as dangerous as people might think it is.