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RADIATION DETECTOR CLICKS AND
BEEPS
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00:00:24,137 --> 00:00:25,586
Wow.
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00:00:29,896 --> 00:00:34,896
SIREN WAILS
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00:00:34,931 --> 00:00:39,000
When the Chernobyl Nuclear
Reactor exploded in 1986,
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00:00:39,068 --> 00:00:41,758
it changed Everything.
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00:00:41,793 --> 00:00:43,241
I was 13 years old
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00:00:43,275 --> 00:00:48,172
and it was just when I was
starting to understand the
world.
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00:00:48,206 --> 00:00:52,862
And Chernobyl for me
was such a massive
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00:00:52,931 --> 00:00:55,241
punctuation mark.
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00:00:55,275 --> 00:00:58,448
Now, 35 years after the
disaster,
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00:00:58,482 --> 00:01:02,310
I'm travelling to the most
radioactive place on Earth.
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00:01:03,827 --> 00:01:07,965
This is the accident
and emergency department.
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00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:10,517
Imagine the horrors
that went on in here.
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00:01:10,551 --> 00:01:12,551
I've been granted special
permission
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00:01:12,586 --> 00:01:15,827
to explore some of Chernobyl's
secrets...
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Some people believe this was a
mind controller, like a brain
scorcher.
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00:01:21,517 --> 00:01:26,758
..going inside the very control
room where the fatal mistake
was made...
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00:01:26,793 --> 00:01:29,068
Goodness me.
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00:01:29,103 --> 00:01:31,655
I mean, this is unbelievable.
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00:01:31,689 --> 00:01:36,344
..and seeing close-up
the tomb of the doomed reactor.
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Wow. I can't quite believe
I'm actually in here.
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What has Chernobyl now become?
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00:01:45,103 --> 00:01:47,241
Oh, look.
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00:01:47,310 --> 00:01:48,724
So, someone's been staying in
here.
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00:01:50,103 --> 00:01:52,137
This is the Chernobyl squatter.
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00:01:53,862 --> 00:01:57,241
And what does it mean
for the generations to come?
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00:01:57,275 --> 00:02:00,103
I see this as a very timely
visit.
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00:02:00,172 --> 00:02:03,241
Because the world
is at tipping point.
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00:02:03,275 --> 00:02:09,034
I'm hoping that by visiting
this place, the people,
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00:02:09,103 --> 00:02:13,931
maybe I'll find some hope
that all is not lost.
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00:02:36,448 --> 00:02:41,068
I'm on my way to the scene of
the world's worst nuclear
accident.
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00:02:41,103 --> 00:02:45,379
So, this road doesn't lead
anywhere but into the
Restricted Zone now?
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00:02:45,448 --> 00:02:49,137
We call it simply The Zone.
The Zone, yes.
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00:02:49,172 --> 00:02:51,551
Where I'm going, I have to be
accompanied
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00:02:51,586 --> 00:02:54,241
by a government sanctioned
expert.
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00:02:54,310 --> 00:02:57,724
Nikolai Fomin has in-depth
knowledge of the risks.
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00:02:57,758 --> 00:02:59,413
So this is the checkpoint?
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00:02:59,448 --> 00:03:03,448
Still pretty highly
militarised area so please
prepare your documents.
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00:03:06,448 --> 00:03:11,034
Beyond this border crossing is
the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone,
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00:03:11,068 --> 00:03:12,793
a region so contaminated
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00:03:12,862 --> 00:03:16,758
it was closed off from the rest
of the world for over a decade.
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00:03:16,793 --> 00:03:19,275
It feels quite strange.
It's heavily militarised,
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00:03:19,310 --> 00:03:23,379
there's load of police
and it's heavily controlled
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00:03:23,413 --> 00:03:27,206
in terms of who can go in
and even who can go out.
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00:03:31,413 --> 00:03:35,172
From now on, the law dictates
that the increased radiation
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00:03:35,206 --> 00:03:39,241
I'm about to experience
must be continually monitored.
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00:03:39,275 --> 00:03:42,275
I've got the meter for you.
The dosimeter.Yeah.
48
00:03:42,310 --> 00:03:45,620
This is the device that
measures your total radiation
exposure,
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00:03:45,655 --> 00:03:48,586
your dose. So this I have to
wear around my neck? Yes.
50
00:03:48,655 --> 00:03:50,344
And this is the Geiger counter.
Yeah.
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00:03:50,379 --> 00:03:52,793
These units measure
radiation level.
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00:03:52,862 --> 00:03:55,724
It's never zero, right? So
there is always a little bit
of background
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00:03:55,758 --> 00:03:57,310
radiation all over the world.
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00:03:57,344 --> 00:04:02,137
So right now we are measuring
0.13 microsieverts per hour.
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00:04:02,206 --> 00:04:07,000
If radiation levels exceed
normal reading, it will go
off.
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00:04:07,034 --> 00:04:09,413
It will start flashing red,
it will start beeping
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00:04:09,448 --> 00:04:13,000
so you'll never miss that.
OK, we're good to go.
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00:04:14,586 --> 00:04:17,448
Two worlds. I'm about to
step over the threshold.
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00:04:24,896 --> 00:04:29,068
I'll be spending a week living
inside the Exclusion Zone,
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00:04:29,137 --> 00:04:33,310
which covers an area of more
than 1,000 square miles -
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00:04:33,344 --> 00:04:35,655
larger than Luxembourg.
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00:04:40,275 --> 00:04:43,620
The Zone was established
in the aftermath of the worst
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00:04:43,655 --> 00:04:45,758
nuclear disaster in history.
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00:04:48,034 --> 00:04:51,103
On April 26th 1986,
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00:04:51,137 --> 00:04:54,517
Chernobyl's reactor No 4
exploded.
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00:04:54,551 --> 00:04:59,206
The resulting fire lasted ten
days, releasing 400 times as
much
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00:04:59,275 --> 00:05:03,620
radioactive material as the
atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
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00:05:05,862 --> 00:05:09,310
The entire civilian population
in the surrounding towns
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00:05:09,379 --> 00:05:12,068
and villages was forcibly
evacuated,
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00:05:12,103 --> 00:05:14,689
later told never to return.
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00:05:29,103 --> 00:05:32,103
Are these radiation signs?
Yes, they are.
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00:05:32,137 --> 00:05:34,103
Stay away from the warning
signs
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00:05:34,137 --> 00:05:37,827
and from now on
don't touch anything.
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00:05:37,862 --> 00:05:41,620
I'll be going inside the
stricken power plant itself,
75
00:05:41,655 --> 00:05:45,517
but first I want to visit
the ghost of Chernobyl.
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00:05:47,379 --> 00:05:50,448
We're in the city now.
Yes, we're in Pripyat.
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00:05:50,482 --> 00:05:53,620
In front of us
is main street of Pripyat.
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00:05:53,655 --> 00:05:55,689
This is the main street?
This is the main street.
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00:05:55,724 --> 00:05:58,620
So, everything, all these
trees, this has all grown
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00:05:58,655 --> 00:06:00,724
since it was abandoned?Yeah.
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00:06:03,931 --> 00:06:09,000
Pripyat was still being
constructed when its 48,000
residents all left.
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00:06:10,758 --> 00:06:16,551
It was designed to be the model
socialist city, a Soviet
Utopia.
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00:06:20,482 --> 00:06:23,172
Never really seen anything like
it.
84
00:06:23,241 --> 00:06:28,068
I've Been to war zones, I've
seen places that have, you
know,
85
00:06:28,103 --> 00:06:32,620
experienced great upheaval and
changes but never quite like
this.
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00:06:34,137 --> 00:06:39,310
I'm imagining mums and their
pushchairs and children
squealing.
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00:06:39,344 --> 00:06:42,000
You know, a bustling place.
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00:06:43,689 --> 00:06:45,206
And now look at it.
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00:06:55,379 --> 00:06:59,862
I was expecting to see a few
derelict buildings but not
this.
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00:07:01,413 --> 00:07:03,620
This is not even a town.
91
00:07:03,689 --> 00:07:08,034
This is an entire city,
with five secondary schools,
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00:07:08,068 --> 00:07:13,103
two sports stadiums
and its own Palace of Culture,
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00:07:13,137 --> 00:07:16,586
all left to ruin
and consumed by nature.
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00:07:19,482 --> 00:07:23,000
That's incredible, I'm on a
multistorey school building
95
00:07:23,034 --> 00:07:25,827
and there's trees
growing through the floor.
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00:07:31,551 --> 00:07:34,137
I do feel like
I've gone back in time.
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00:07:35,965 --> 00:07:41,827
To me, that looks like sort of
dosimetry to test for
radiation.
98
00:07:41,896 --> 00:07:45,689
The great irony is that
everyone here was preparing for
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00:07:45,724 --> 00:07:47,206
a nuclear catastrophe
100
00:07:47,241 --> 00:07:50,413
that came from the other side
of the Atlantic that would
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00:07:50,448 --> 00:07:54,724
come in the form of a bomb, not
in the form of their own power
station.
102
00:08:10,793 --> 00:08:11,931
Wow.
103
00:08:14,689 --> 00:08:18,103
Iconic, poignant.
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00:08:18,137 --> 00:08:20,344
It's kind of everything, this.
105
00:08:20,379 --> 00:08:22,965
Cos this was the theme park
that never was.
106
00:08:25,310 --> 00:08:29,793
The abandoned city of Pripyat
is unlike anywhere I've ever
been.
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00:08:29,827 --> 00:08:31,896
Life changed here forever
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00:08:31,931 --> 00:08:35,413
a day after the world's
worst nuclear disaster.
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00:08:40,413 --> 00:08:44,275
By all accounts Pripyat had
been a happy, thriving city,
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00:08:44,310 --> 00:08:48,137
full of the hopes and dreams
of a young population.
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00:08:48,172 --> 00:08:50,344
The average age was 26.
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00:08:50,379 --> 00:08:53,689
It was built just 3km
from the Chernobyl Power Plant
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00:08:53,724 --> 00:08:55,724
for workers and their families,
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00:08:55,758 --> 00:08:59,103
with brand-new facilities to
rival the West.
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00:08:59,137 --> 00:09:00,413
Wow.
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00:09:03,448 --> 00:09:04,827
WHISTLE PEEPS
117
00:09:04,862 --> 00:09:06,275
CHEERING
118
00:09:16,103 --> 00:09:20,379
Back in 1986 this was
state of the art in the USSR.
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00:09:20,413 --> 00:09:25,620
This was unheard of cos
Pripyat, this was a model town,
a model city.
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00:09:25,655 --> 00:09:30,275
I suppose the comparison in the
United Kingdom is Milton
Keynes.
121
00:09:30,310 --> 00:09:33,793
You know, this was built for
purpose and the living
standards here
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00:09:33,827 --> 00:09:38,862
were far better than anywhere
else in the Soviet Union.
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00:09:38,896 --> 00:09:43,137
It makes me smile more in here
than other places,
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00:09:43,206 --> 00:09:45,275
with an air sadness as well
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00:09:45,310 --> 00:09:50,103
cos there would have been so
many happy times that people
had in here.
126
00:09:58,344 --> 00:10:00,344
The Chernobyl No 4 reactor
127
00:10:00,379 --> 00:10:04,413
exploded in the early hours
of April 26th, 1986.
128
00:10:04,448 --> 00:10:06,206
When Pripyat awoke,
129
00:10:06,241 --> 00:10:09,965
toxic levels of radiation were
already engulfing the area.
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00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:14,344
But no warning was given.
People continued their lives as
normal.
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00:10:17,448 --> 00:10:21,241
Alexander Sirota was a
nine-year-old schoolboy at the
time.
132
00:10:22,620 --> 00:10:27,275
So, what are your memories
from the 26th of April 1986?
133
00:10:53,862 --> 00:10:55,655
So this is the school here?
134
00:10:58,896 --> 00:11:00,827
Right through here?Yes.
135
00:11:00,862 --> 00:11:04,379
This is You?Yes.
This is poignant.
136
00:11:04,448 --> 00:11:05,551
Wow.
137
00:11:36,758 --> 00:11:38,793
Alexander was sent back to
school,
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00:11:38,862 --> 00:11:41,379
despite the fact that radiation
levels in the city
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00:11:41,413 --> 00:11:45,275
had reached alarming levels.
Incredibly, the Soviet
authorities
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00:11:45,310 --> 00:11:49,068
waited 36 hours before
starting an evacuation.
141
00:11:50,827 --> 00:11:52,586
Can I ask if you or your family
142
00:11:52,620 --> 00:11:56,206
suffered long-term
health implications?
143
00:12:11,620 --> 00:12:15,862
I-I really can't even imagine
what he went through.
144
00:12:15,931 --> 00:12:19,551
That 36 hour delay,
so much is made about that.
145
00:12:19,586 --> 00:12:20,896
Without doubt,
146
00:12:20,965 --> 00:12:25,482
that cost people their health
and probably their lives.
147
00:12:25,551 --> 00:12:29,517
The Soviet Union did not want
to admit, it was embarrassing,
148
00:12:29,586 --> 00:12:32,310
it wasn't... It wasn't Soviet.
149
00:12:32,379 --> 00:12:35,931
You know, a reactor couldn't
explode, there was disbelief
150
00:12:35,965 --> 00:12:42,965
but there was also denial
and denial cost lives.
151
00:12:47,620 --> 00:12:51,620
By the afternoon, confusion had
descended on Pripyat.
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00:12:51,689 --> 00:12:54,206
No official information
was being provided
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00:12:54,241 --> 00:12:57,827
other than a small fire
on the roof of the power plant.
154
00:12:57,862 --> 00:13:01,482
But there was one place in the
city that had already been a
witness
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00:13:01,517 --> 00:13:04,172
to the terrifying events
that were unfolding.
156
00:13:06,310 --> 00:13:09,172
Oh, hello, we've got company.
157
00:13:09,206 --> 00:13:13,137
In my mind this is one of the
most significant buildings,
really,
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00:13:13,172 --> 00:13:18,517
in Pripyat cos this is
the hospital, Hospital 126.
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00:13:21,068 --> 00:13:25,241
Everyone who went to the plant
that night to fight the little
fire
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00:13:25,310 --> 00:13:27,862
on the roof that we now know
was this...
161
00:13:27,931 --> 00:13:31,034
..this world-shattering
explosion...
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00:13:32,206 --> 00:13:34,689
..would have been taken
in this door.
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00:13:41,241 --> 00:13:43,586
Remember to just not touch
stuff, yeah.
164
00:13:48,586 --> 00:13:53,275
In the hours after the
explosion, 108 firefighters and
plant workers,
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00:13:53,310 --> 00:13:55,896
suffering from acute radiation
sickness,
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00:13:55,931 --> 00:13:58,448
were taken through these
corridors.
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00:14:01,827 --> 00:14:06,413
This is the accident
and emergency department.
168
00:14:06,448 --> 00:14:10,862
I'm trying to imagine the chaos
and but also the unknown,
really.
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00:14:10,896 --> 00:14:13,724
No-one really knew why all
these firefighters were coming
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00:14:13,793 --> 00:14:15,827
and why they were vomiting.
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00:14:17,482 --> 00:14:21,827
The contamination they left
is still a danger today.
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00:14:21,896 --> 00:14:26,344
That's the reason I've got a
mask on right now, all those
dust particles.
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00:14:26,379 --> 00:14:29,344
Don't really want those
going into my nose and mouth.
174
00:14:29,379 --> 00:14:31,862
Cos this is one of the most
radioactive parts of Pripyat.
175
00:14:31,931 --> 00:14:34,793
All the first responders
were heavily radioactive
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00:14:34,827 --> 00:14:37,000
from fighting those fires.
177
00:14:42,413 --> 00:14:46,413
Anyone exposed to radiation at
the power plant should have
been washed
178
00:14:46,448 --> 00:14:51,034
and dressed in uncontaminated
clothing before they arrived
here.
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00:14:51,068 --> 00:14:52,931
That never happen.
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00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:56,000
This is kind of strange.
181
00:14:56,068 --> 00:14:59,655
There are still the rags that
the nurses were using on the
firemen.
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00:14:59,689 --> 00:15:03,758
If I use my dosimeter that is
picking up beta...
183
00:15:03,793 --> 00:15:07,793
BEEPING AND CLICKING
184
00:15:07,827 --> 00:15:10,793
It's already gone
the highest it's been.
185
00:15:10,827 --> 00:15:12,724
The reading is 60 times higher
186
00:15:12,793 --> 00:15:17,310
than the average background
radiation just outside The
Zone.
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00:15:17,344 --> 00:15:19,275
I'm not going to spend
very long in here.
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00:15:19,310 --> 00:15:21,172
I'm obviously being very
sensible.
189
00:15:21,206 --> 00:15:26,068
But it's the invisibility of
the radiation that they would
have had
190
00:15:26,103 --> 00:15:30,172
as well, they wouldn't have had
a clue. They didn't have these.
191
00:15:30,206 --> 00:15:32,965
These were just firemen
who had burns
192
00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,275
and unknown symptoms
that caused vomiting.
193
00:15:40,137 --> 00:15:43,758
28 people brought to this
hospital after the explosion
194
00:15:43,793 --> 00:15:46,655
lost their lives
within three months.
195
00:15:46,689 --> 00:15:49,827
It's unclear how many would
later suffer ill health as a
result
196
00:15:49,862 --> 00:15:52,586
of their exposure to radiation
that night.
197
00:15:57,241 --> 00:16:01,206
I think of all the buildings
I've been into in Pripyat,
198
00:16:01,241 --> 00:16:06,827
this is...the most chilling,
most haunting.
199
00:16:06,862 --> 00:16:09,206
Imagine the horrors
that went on in here,
200
00:16:09,241 --> 00:16:11,034
the number of lives that were
lost
201
00:16:11,068 --> 00:16:14,000
cos this was a town
of 48,000 people.
202
00:16:14,034 --> 00:16:16,275
In fact, they called it a city.
203
00:16:16,310 --> 00:16:21,931
So there would have been many,
many pregnant women, lots of
newborns.
204
00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:25,931
And just 36 hours after the
accident
205
00:16:25,965 --> 00:16:30,241
this, along with the whole
city, was evacuated.
206
00:16:30,275 --> 00:16:32,965
A whole working hospital, gone.
207
00:16:34,034 --> 00:16:35,241
Look at it now.
208
00:16:41,793 --> 00:16:45,551
I've been told that beneath
this pile of rather
innocent-looking sand
209
00:16:45,586 --> 00:16:47,068
is the entrance to the
basement,
210
00:16:47,137 --> 00:16:50,206
one of the most toxic parts
of the whole Chernobyl.
211
00:16:50,241 --> 00:16:53,896
All of the uniforms from the
first responders, the
firefighters -
212
00:16:53,965 --> 00:16:57,655
so their boots, their tunics
their hats - was taken down
213
00:16:57,689 --> 00:17:01,172
into the basement where it was
left
214
00:17:01,206 --> 00:17:04,517
because they were so toxic,
so radioactive,
215
00:17:04,551 --> 00:17:06,965
they couldn't let anyone go
near it.
216
00:17:07,000 --> 00:17:11,241
The basement was only sealed a
few years ago to stop
trespassers
217
00:17:11,275 --> 00:17:16,068
intent on venturing into one of
Chernobyl's deadliest sites.
218
00:17:16,137 --> 00:17:18,068
Nikolai wants to show me
some footage
219
00:17:18,137 --> 00:17:19,655
of what's actually down there.
220
00:17:21,241 --> 00:17:24,586
This is the basement of the
hospital before it was buried.
Mm-hm.
221
00:17:24,620 --> 00:17:27,896
Levels of radiation there
are insanely high.
222
00:17:29,275 --> 00:17:33,448
72... 700. 720... That's off
the scale now, you see.
223
00:17:33,482 --> 00:17:36,689
And that's a pair
of fireman's boots.
224
00:17:36,724 --> 00:17:40,931
The main risk is not even the
dose of radiation you obtained
there,
225
00:17:40,965 --> 00:17:45,931
it's dust. All those tiny
partials of radioactive
material,
226
00:17:45,965 --> 00:17:51,103
if you ingest any of those,
even the microscopic ones you
cannot see,
227
00:17:51,137 --> 00:17:53,896
they are capable
of killing human beings.
228
00:17:55,379 --> 00:17:58,758
Are these authorised
individuals?
229
00:17:58,793 --> 00:18:01,758
No, I'm pretty sure
they are trespassers.
230
00:18:01,793 --> 00:18:05,448
Cos it's strictly
forbidden to go there.
231
00:18:05,482 --> 00:18:08,310
Although in recent years
authorities have allowed some
232
00:18:08,344 --> 00:18:11,689
very strictly controlled tours
inside the wider Zone area...
233
00:18:14,275 --> 00:18:18,000
..illegal thrill-seekers,
driven largely by social media,
234
00:18:18,034 --> 00:18:20,241
continue to be a problem here.
235
00:18:20,310 --> 00:18:23,827
I think these guys are doing it
for adrenaline, attention...
236
00:18:23,862 --> 00:18:26,068
Showing off.
..social media, showing off.
237
00:18:26,103 --> 00:18:30,655
That's what drives people to
take the risk and go down
there.
238
00:18:33,241 --> 00:18:35,689
What about the firemen's
helmets, are they down there?
239
00:18:35,724 --> 00:18:40,758
There was one helmet that
somebody took from the basement
240
00:18:40,827 --> 00:18:44,241
and put on the ground floor of
the hospital building in
Pripyat.
241
00:18:44,275 --> 00:18:49,137
That was in front of
the main entrance for years.
242
00:18:49,172 --> 00:18:51,310
Now it's gone. Somebody took
it.
243
00:18:51,344 --> 00:18:55,620
So somewhere out there is a
highly radioactive fireman's
helmet?
244
00:18:55,655 --> 00:18:58,620
Yeah, and I hope
that's within The Zone.
245
00:18:58,655 --> 00:19:01,103
I really hope
they didn't take it out
246
00:19:01,172 --> 00:19:03,655
because that's
the worst case scenario.
247
00:19:03,689 --> 00:19:06,241
Cos if you take something
radioactive from here,
248
00:19:06,275 --> 00:19:08,172
it can cause a lot of trouble.
249
00:19:08,206 --> 00:19:11,482
Radiation has no taste, it's
invisible, you can't see it,
250
00:19:11,517 --> 00:19:12,965
you can't smell it.
251
00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:16,724
The levels of radiation in the
uniforms are a sobering
reminder
252
00:19:16,758 --> 00:19:20,551
of just how toxic some parts
of The Zone still are.
253
00:19:20,586 --> 00:19:24,344
Scientists predict the
Chernobyl reactor site will be
uninhabitable
254
00:19:24,379 --> 00:19:28,000
for at least 20,000 years.
255
00:19:28,034 --> 00:19:30,413
Containing the disaster is
ongoing.
256
00:19:30,448 --> 00:19:33,551
Almost 3,000 people still
work at the power plant.
257
00:19:33,586 --> 00:19:35,896
No-one can stay within
10km of the site
258
00:19:35,931 --> 00:19:38,655
and for some workers
this is a way of life.
259
00:19:39,793 --> 00:19:43,586
So you do this everyday,
basically, when you go into the
Control Zone.
260
00:19:45,241 --> 00:19:46,241
Clean.
261
00:19:47,379 --> 00:19:52,896
This just analyses what I've
got on me, if I'm contaminated
or not.
262
00:19:52,931 --> 00:19:56,482
That says I'm clean.
It's good news.
263
00:20:00,758 --> 00:20:04,413
I'm spending my first night at
one of the few lodgings in The
Zone.
264
00:20:09,068 --> 00:20:10,241
Yes, of course.
265
00:20:10,310 --> 00:20:12,068
BEEPING
266
00:20:12,137 --> 00:20:13,103
OK.
267
00:20:15,655 --> 00:20:17,620
OK. Over here?
268
00:20:17,655 --> 00:20:19,827
VOICEOVER: To limit
my dose of radiation,
269
00:20:19,862 --> 00:20:24,448
I'm only allowed to stay in The
Zone for up to 14 days at a
time.
270
00:20:29,655 --> 00:20:30,862
Wow.
271
00:20:31,206 --> 00:20:33,965
It's actually a lot more
comfortable than I thought this
was going to be.
272
00:20:37,931 --> 00:20:41,068
But it is very weird that I am
just a few of kilometres
273
00:20:41,103 --> 00:20:46,448
from the Chernobyl
that I remember melting down
274
00:20:46,482 --> 00:20:51,344
when I was a 13-year-old. And
here I am, about to have my
first night.
275
00:20:51,379 --> 00:20:54,724
And I've even got a memory of
home. That's nice.
276
00:20:54,793 --> 00:20:59,689
I've been advised that boots
should maybe be left outside
277
00:20:59,724 --> 00:21:04,965
just because they've been
touching dirt and dust that
might be
278
00:21:05,000 --> 00:21:08,310
a little bit more radioactive
than anything else.
279
00:21:08,344 --> 00:21:10,758
So these need to be left
outside.
280
00:21:18,206 --> 00:21:22,379
The invisible threat of
radiation is ever present in
The Zone.
281
00:21:22,413 --> 00:21:26,689
Tomorrow, I'm going to the very
heart of where it all started.
282
00:21:36,689 --> 00:21:41,310
The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is
a strange and unsettling place,
283
00:21:41,344 --> 00:21:45,310
filled with haunting human
stories of a paradise lost.
284
00:21:48,344 --> 00:21:51,827
I want to get closer to the
events that actually unfolded
285
00:21:51,896 --> 00:21:55,206
in the early hours of April
26th 1986,
286
00:21:55,241 --> 00:21:59,000
and so that can only lead me
to one place.
287
00:22:00,448 --> 00:22:03,931
The Chernobyl Nuclear Power
Plant itself.
288
00:22:06,896 --> 00:22:12,344
This, back in 1986,
was ground zero.
289
00:22:12,379 --> 00:22:14,758
When the roof blew off
290
00:22:14,793 --> 00:22:19,448
that was one of the things
that we were most fearful of.
291
00:22:19,517 --> 00:22:23,758
Thousands of miles away in the
UK, I remember being terrified
of it.
292
00:22:23,793 --> 00:22:27,275
What happens if that reached
me?
293
00:22:27,344 --> 00:22:28,448
Now I'm here.
294
00:22:30,241 --> 00:22:33,758
I'm...going to go in there.
295
00:22:33,793 --> 00:22:35,413
How mad is that?
296
00:22:44,172 --> 00:22:48,000
An enormous steel arch now
shields the highly radioactive
remains
297
00:22:48,068 --> 00:22:51,241
of Chernobyl's doomed
No 4 reactor unit.
298
00:22:51,310 --> 00:22:55,724
I've been given permission to
go inside the actual control
room
299
00:22:55,758 --> 00:22:57,620
where the disaster unfolded,
300
00:22:57,655 --> 00:23:01,206
which for decades has been
completely off limits.
301
00:23:05,034 --> 00:23:08,896
I'm heading into the inner
workings of Chernobyl.
302
00:23:08,931 --> 00:23:16,413
So, you have to make sure there
is nothing that can be
contaminated
303
00:23:16,482 --> 00:23:19,758
so the only thing that I'm
wearing of my own is my pants.
304
00:23:21,931 --> 00:23:24,551
They may need to be changed
after this.
305
00:23:26,448 --> 00:23:29,000
Are we ready?I think so.
306
00:23:35,413 --> 00:23:37,827
From now on we have to move
quickly.
307
00:23:37,862 --> 00:23:39,655
The power plant is vast
308
00:23:39,689 --> 00:23:42,931
and my permitted dose of
radiation strictly controlled.
309
00:23:46,068 --> 00:23:49,344
This is pretty extraordinary,
this, to...
310
00:23:49,379 --> 00:23:52,275
..be given access into the
311
00:23:52,310 --> 00:23:55,689
workings of Chernobyl.
312
00:23:55,724 --> 00:23:57,137
Pretty amazing.
313
00:24:00,103 --> 00:24:03,724
Lots of activity here, there's
lots of people working here,
314
00:24:03,793 --> 00:24:06,827
obviously, ensuring that it's
safe.
315
00:24:08,206 --> 00:24:09,586
Wow, it's endless.
316
00:24:12,689 --> 00:24:15,551
The 800-metre so-called
golden corridor
317
00:24:15,586 --> 00:24:18,551
links what remains of
Chernobyl's reactor 4
318
00:24:18,586 --> 00:24:20,379
to its three other reactors,
319
00:24:20,448 --> 00:24:23,689
which were largely undamaged
in the explosion.
320
00:24:28,172 --> 00:24:31,000
So that says Control Room 1?
Yes.So that's in there.
321
00:24:33,758 --> 00:24:36,793
I'll only have a very limited
and restricted time
322
00:24:36,827 --> 00:24:41,103
inside the heavily contaminated
shell of Control Room 4.
323
00:24:45,379 --> 00:24:47,896
So, engineer Valerii Kulishenko
324
00:24:47,931 --> 00:24:51,034
first takes me to see
what it WOULD have looked like.
325
00:24:57,344 --> 00:25:01,137
Feels like going back in time
now. So, this is the control
room
326
00:25:01,172 --> 00:25:03,448
of reactor No 3,
327
00:25:03,482 --> 00:25:07,068
the sister reactor
to the one that exploded.
328
00:25:07,137 --> 00:25:09,206
On the night of the accident,
329
00:25:09,241 --> 00:25:12,310
up the corridor
in Control Room Number 4,
330
00:25:12,379 --> 00:25:15,448
engineers were carrying out
complex reactor tests
331
00:25:15,482 --> 00:25:18,206
that were spiralling out of
control.
332
00:25:18,241 --> 00:25:20,896
As an exact mirror to
Control Room Number 4,
333
00:25:20,931 --> 00:25:24,931
this was the button
that doomed Chernobyl.
334
00:25:24,965 --> 00:25:28,068
This unprecedented
chain of events had begun,
335
00:25:28,103 --> 00:25:31,413
and the final decision was made
to shut it down.
336
00:25:31,482 --> 00:25:32,896
The button was turned...
337
00:25:36,448 --> 00:25:39,310
..and that was it. Disaster.
338
00:25:45,793 --> 00:25:49,103
The shutdown triggered
a massive power surge.
339
00:25:49,172 --> 00:25:51,034
Oh, my goodness.
340
00:25:51,068 --> 00:25:55,206
The core overheated and,
seconds later, the first
explosion,
341
00:25:55,241 --> 00:25:57,482
followed soon after by a
second.
342
00:25:58,655 --> 00:26:01,896
This is truly extraordinary.
343
00:26:01,931 --> 00:26:05,965
I am standing on
reactor No 3.
344
00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:09,206
So, each of these is a fuel
rod.
345
00:26:09,241 --> 00:26:12,965
1,661 to be exact.
346
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:17,310
This is an exact mirror
of reactor No 4.
347
00:26:17,379 --> 00:26:22,310
This blew right through the
ceiling. Everything came off.
348
00:26:22,344 --> 00:26:26,068
This is what people thought
was impossible.
349
00:26:26,103 --> 00:26:29,275
But what you must remember
is we're talking 1986.
350
00:26:29,310 --> 00:26:32,862
That was when nuclear energy
was in its infancy, it was
transitioning
351
00:26:32,896 --> 00:26:36,206
from weapon to source of power
352
00:26:36,275 --> 00:26:39,931
and the USSR were producing
these power stations
353
00:26:39,965 --> 00:26:43,000
faster than anyone else,
354
00:26:43,034 --> 00:26:45,413
but they were also cutting
corners.
355
00:26:50,827 --> 00:26:54,275
These reactors weren't designed
with a concrete and steel dome
356
00:26:54,344 --> 00:26:56,448
to contain the radiation.
357
00:26:56,482 --> 00:26:59,724
Two engineers were killed
instantly in the explosion
358
00:26:59,793 --> 00:27:02,586
while the night shift in
Control Room Number 4
359
00:27:02,620 --> 00:27:05,689
were exposed to lethal levels
of radiation.
360
00:27:07,206 --> 00:27:08,965
So, there's a little hatch
here.
361
00:27:09,000 --> 00:27:12,137
It looks like I'm going to be
given another dosimeter.
362
00:27:12,172 --> 00:27:14,931
Kind of shows that I'm now
heading into a more vulnerable
part
363
00:27:14,965 --> 00:27:19,827
of Chernobyl. There's much
higher radiation where we're
going now.
364
00:27:21,379 --> 00:27:24,068
I'm now heading into the heart
of the Chernobyl story...
365
00:27:24,103 --> 00:27:25,517
Through here?
366
00:27:25,586 --> 00:27:28,413
..where many of the decisions
and actions that led to the
disaster
367
00:27:28,448 --> 00:27:30,034
played out.
368
00:27:30,068 --> 00:27:33,827
So, this door goes into
Control Room Number 4?
369
00:27:36,275 --> 00:27:40,896
I mean, this is pretty
extraordinary because beyond
this door
370
00:27:40,931 --> 00:27:44,103
is a control room
that changed the world.
371
00:27:44,137 --> 00:27:46,793
I mean, this is unbelievable.
372
00:27:56,448 --> 00:27:57,827
Goodness me.
373
00:28:00,586 --> 00:28:02,551
I don't have long to take it
in.
374
00:28:06,275 --> 00:28:08,655
Five minutes to absorb all of
this. Wow.
375
00:28:13,310 --> 00:28:19,413
In terms of places of
historical significance this is
right up there
376
00:28:19,448 --> 00:28:23,758
because, arguably,
this was the location
377
00:28:23,793 --> 00:28:26,551
of the world's greatest
mistake.
378
00:28:57,379 --> 00:29:00,344
Oh, my goodness.
It's a time capsule.
379
00:29:00,379 --> 00:29:04,413
Lots of things have been
removed. Where are they?
380
00:29:04,448 --> 00:29:05,931
Stolen over the years.
381
00:29:07,448 --> 00:29:10,344
It's hard to even imagine
the terrifying events
382
00:29:10,379 --> 00:29:12,103
that took place here.
383
00:29:12,137 --> 00:29:15,862
The panic, the fear, the
horrific effects of radiation.
384
00:29:17,586 --> 00:29:20,068
The reading is pretty high in
here. It's about as high
385
00:29:20,103 --> 00:29:24,965
as I've seen during my whole
time around Chernobyl.
386
00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:31,000
But what a profound,
extraordinary, moving place.
387
00:29:31,034 --> 00:29:32,620
I mean, look at this.
388
00:29:37,241 --> 00:29:40,896
Soviet authorities blamed the
disaster on an inexperienced
389
00:29:40,931 --> 00:29:43,965
night shift failing to follow
safety protocols.
390
00:29:44,034 --> 00:29:47,103
But was it human error,
flaws in the design
391
00:29:47,137 --> 00:29:50,448
or was the Soviet nuclear
programme's technology
392
00:29:50,482 --> 00:29:51,620
just unstable?
393
00:29:52,896 --> 00:29:55,068
Time, we have to go.
394
00:29:55,103 --> 00:29:56,862
Then my time was up.
395
00:29:58,862 --> 00:30:00,965
OK, we gotta go.
396
00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:06,896
I doubt I'll ever come back
into here but, wow, what an
experience.
397
00:30:08,172 --> 00:30:11,000
It's a reminder,
I suppose, of our mortality.
398
00:30:17,068 --> 00:30:19,896
I'll be returning to the power
plant later in my journey
399
00:30:19,931 --> 00:30:23,724
to see something perhaps even
more extraordinary -
400
00:30:23,758 --> 00:30:28,620
the tomb of the doomed reactor,
deeper inside the huge steal
arch.
401
00:30:40,275 --> 00:30:43,413
There are very few people
who witnessed first-hand
402
00:30:43,448 --> 00:30:46,931
the events of that night
and lived to tell their story.
403
00:30:46,965 --> 00:30:49,655
I'm returning to the ghost town
of Pripyat
404
00:30:49,724 --> 00:30:51,965
to meet one person that did...
405
00:30:54,689 --> 00:30:56,206
So, this is the police station?
406
00:30:58,172 --> 00:31:01,448
..a former policeman
called Alexey Moskalenko.
407
00:31:10,517 --> 00:31:13,931
Alexey was a 29-year-old
officer with a young family
408
00:31:13,965 --> 00:31:15,758
when the disaster happened.
409
00:31:20,241 --> 00:31:24,413
Incredibly, he was on patrol
directly outside the power
station
410
00:31:24,448 --> 00:31:26,379
when reactor 4 exploded.
411
00:31:52,586 --> 00:31:57,000
Despite his injuries, long
after his own family had been
evacuated,
412
00:31:57,034 --> 00:32:00,413
Alexey stayed on in Pripyat
to police the enormous,
413
00:32:00,448 --> 00:32:02,931
life-threatening clean-up
operation.
414
00:32:04,034 --> 00:32:05,724
Where are we going now?
415
00:32:16,896 --> 00:32:19,379
So this, this is the claw?
416
00:32:19,413 --> 00:32:23,000
Apparently, this grappling claw
was attached to a crane
417
00:32:23,034 --> 00:32:25,172
and used to handle large chunks
418
00:32:25,206 --> 00:32:29,517
of ultra-radioactive graphite
ejected by the explosion.
419
00:32:29,586 --> 00:32:32,620
Does that not mean that this is
highly radioactive?
420
00:32:42,275 --> 00:32:44,310
BEEPING AND CLICKING
421
00:32:48,379 --> 00:32:51,310
OK. I don't want you to overdo
it!
422
00:32:51,344 --> 00:32:53,965
That was as high as I've seen
it.
423
00:33:04,655 --> 00:33:08,517
Toxic debris was scattered
all over the roof of reactor 3,
424
00:33:08,551 --> 00:33:11,793
spewing out lethal doses
of radiation.
425
00:33:11,862 --> 00:33:14,827
Attempts to use robots
to clear the area failed
426
00:33:14,862 --> 00:33:17,241
so another method was needed.
427
00:33:40,724 --> 00:33:43,655
The army of people drafted in
for the deadly task
428
00:33:43,689 --> 00:33:46,448
became known as the
liquidators.
429
00:33:46,482 --> 00:33:48,103
Every shovel they used
430
00:33:48,137 --> 00:33:51,689
and every item of makeshift
protective clothing they wore
431
00:33:51,724 --> 00:33:56,758
had to be safely disposed of
after each potentially fatal
mission.
432
00:33:56,793 --> 00:33:59,586
Thousands of liquidators
are thought to have died
433
00:33:59,620 --> 00:34:02,275
as a result of exposure
to radiation.
434
00:34:05,620 --> 00:34:09,137
Do you think people sacrificed
their lives because they had to
435
00:34:09,206 --> 00:34:11,827
or did they do it for their
country?
436
00:34:21,862 --> 00:34:24,344
Did you...
Did you sacrifice your health?
437
00:34:29,724 --> 00:34:31,724
You were given five years.
438
00:34:40,655 --> 00:34:42,482
It's just incredible,
439
00:34:42,517 --> 00:34:46,586
I mean, to meet someone who not
only experienced it first-hand
440
00:34:46,620 --> 00:34:50,103
but came back, was given
five years to live.
441
00:34:50,137 --> 00:34:54,448
I-I really can't even imagine
what he went through.
442
00:34:56,862 --> 00:35:00,689
It was just a duty of humanity.
443
00:35:00,724 --> 00:35:04,827
So, what he did with arguably
for all of us, really,
444
00:35:04,862 --> 00:35:09,206
to help contain it and that's
what the liquidator's did
445
00:35:09,241 --> 00:35:14,275
and they are the unsung heroes
of this whole sorry story.
446
00:35:20,517 --> 00:35:23,758
Cleared by the liquidators
as best they could,
447
00:35:23,793 --> 00:35:26,241
deep in the Chernobyl Exclusion
Zone
448
00:35:26,275 --> 00:35:30,310
it's still referred to
as a toxic dead zone.
449
00:35:30,344 --> 00:35:34,000
But just how true is that?
Tomorrow I'm going somewhere
450
00:35:34,034 --> 00:35:37,137
that might well turn
everything on its head.
451
00:35:37,172 --> 00:35:41,000
Could people actually
still be living here?
452
00:35:41,034 --> 00:35:43,551
DOG BARKS
453
00:35:54,620 --> 00:35:58,413
My Exclusion Zone lodgings are
in the tiny town of Chernobyl,
454
00:35:58,448 --> 00:36:01,241
after which the power plant
itself was named.
455
00:36:01,275 --> 00:36:07,103
Still inside The Zone, it was
also evacuated but, being 14km
away,
456
00:36:07,137 --> 00:36:10,241
didn't suffer the total
abandonment seen in Pripyat.
457
00:36:12,689 --> 00:36:14,965
It has a very strange feel
here.
458
00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:17,413
It feels like we're the only
people here.
459
00:36:18,689 --> 00:36:22,137
Showing me around
is Kate Goncharenko,
460
00:36:22,206 --> 00:36:25,068
whose father and grandparents
were forcibly relocated
461
00:36:25,103 --> 00:36:27,413
after the accident.
462
00:36:27,448 --> 00:36:30,000
This looks like it's a working
building over here.
463
00:36:30,068 --> 00:36:34,103
Yeah, yeah, exactly. This is
the post office, of Chernobyl
town.
464
00:36:34,137 --> 00:36:37,482
And, generally, the one post
office for the whole area.
465
00:36:37,517 --> 00:36:40,965
And above the window
you can see the screen.
466
00:36:41,000 --> 00:36:45,034
Usually, when we see such a
screen in a post office, we
expect to see
467
00:36:45,068 --> 00:36:48,137
the time there but as long as
we're in the Exclusion Zone
468
00:36:48,172 --> 00:36:50,586
we see the level of radiation
469
00:36:50,620 --> 00:36:53,827
in the different parts
of the Exclusion Zone.
470
00:36:53,862 --> 00:36:55,413
That's kind of mad.
471
00:36:55,448 --> 00:36:59,034
So, basically, what my little
dosimeter is doing here...Yeah.
472
00:36:59,068 --> 00:37:02,620
..that's telling me every
single part and region
473
00:37:02,689 --> 00:37:07,172
of the entire Exclusion Zone.
Exactly, you're getting it
right.
474
00:37:09,241 --> 00:37:12,931
No-one is allowed to stay here
for more than two weeks at a
time,
475
00:37:12,965 --> 00:37:14,724
but there is a local shop.
476
00:37:16,137 --> 00:37:19,241
This is a proper supermarket.
Hello.Hello.
477
00:37:19,275 --> 00:37:23,000
You've got everything you can
need - knives, biscuits, a lot
of alcohol.
478
00:37:23,034 --> 00:37:24,000
Yeah.
479
00:37:27,448 --> 00:37:30,517
Do you just come here
for two weeks at a time?
480
00:37:30,551 --> 00:37:32,275
How do you feel working here?
481
00:37:36,137 --> 00:37:39,655
I think I'm going to get myself
a little something sweet.
482
00:37:39,689 --> 00:37:43,448
Do you fancy anything, Kate?
I guess one of this.Yeah.Yeah.
483
00:37:46,482 --> 00:37:50,413
I love that she's using an
abacus. Yeah.
484
00:37:50,448 --> 00:37:52,551
Like stepping back in time.
485
00:37:52,586 --> 00:37:55,448
26.Thank you.
486
00:37:55,482 --> 00:37:58,344
Thank you so much, bye-bye.
Bye-bye.
487
00:38:01,827 --> 00:38:04,586
It's against the law
to live inside The Zone
488
00:38:04,655 --> 00:38:08,448
but Kate is taking me to the
crumbling outskirts of
Chernobyl
489
00:38:08,482 --> 00:38:12,482
to meet one woman who is
defying the authorities.
490
00:38:12,517 --> 00:38:14,896
Look at all these derelict
houses here.
491
00:38:16,793 --> 00:38:21,551
This is the house of Valentina,
one of the re-settlers,
492
00:38:21,586 --> 00:38:26,551
the people who came back and
continued living in their
homes.
493
00:38:26,586 --> 00:38:27,793
Let's go.
494
00:38:29,103 --> 00:38:31,965
Oh, look she's got a cat.Yeah.
495
00:38:36,448 --> 00:38:40,034
I didn't really that there were
re-settlers, as in people
496
00:38:40,068 --> 00:38:42,034
who moved back here
permanently.
497
00:38:42,068 --> 00:38:45,586
Still feels like this is
a dead zone.
498
00:38:45,655 --> 00:38:48,344
You know, the fact that I'm
walking around with this,
499
00:38:48,379 --> 00:38:52,896
monitoring the amount of
radioactivity that I'm
absorbing,
500
00:38:52,931 --> 00:38:54,896
but Valentina lives here.
501
00:38:54,931 --> 00:38:57,413
It's kind of quite a lot to
get your head around.
502
00:38:57,482 --> 00:38:59,103
Shall we?Yes.
503
00:39:00,310 --> 00:39:02,620
Thank you very much for letting
me come into your house.
504
00:39:04,137 --> 00:39:07,517
Valentina moved back to The
Zone soon after the disaster.
505
00:39:07,551 --> 00:39:10,172
Her late husband found work
here as a liquidator.
506
00:39:10,241 --> 00:39:14,551
Hello, little dog.
Who ate all the pies?
507
00:39:14,586 --> 00:39:16,103
Valentina, what is your dog
called?
508
00:39:17,206 --> 00:39:19,413
Dana. I can't quite work it
out.
509
00:39:19,482 --> 00:39:22,379
It's like a Chihuahua-Corgi
cross.
510
00:39:22,413 --> 00:39:25,000
There's lots of bottles of
water. Do you drink from the
tap?
511
00:39:35,241 --> 00:39:39,862
Valentina does have electricity
and friends bring food in from
outside
512
00:39:39,896 --> 00:39:41,655
but it's a humble existence.
513
00:39:43,793 --> 00:39:46,482
So, Valentina, why did you
choose
514
00:39:46,517 --> 00:39:53,241
to return to a place so close
to Chernobyl Power Station?
515
00:40:01,689 --> 00:40:03,931
Does it ever feel sad here
or lonely here?
516
00:40:29,448 --> 00:40:30,896
Will you ever leave here?
517
00:40:37,586 --> 00:40:41,103
Around 200 re-settlers
still live in The Zone,
518
00:40:41,137 --> 00:40:44,034
one of the most toxic places
on Earth.
519
00:40:44,103 --> 00:40:46,517
Already they've lived longer
on average
520
00:40:46,551 --> 00:40:48,413
than those who never returned.
521
00:40:48,448 --> 00:40:51,206
She also offers us some vodka.
522
00:40:51,241 --> 00:40:55,068
When in Ukraine, I feel
I must take a bit of vodka.
523
00:40:55,137 --> 00:40:57,620
These labels look a little
bit scary.
524
00:40:57,655 --> 00:41:01,000
Isn't that for electricity?
Electricity, yeah.
525
00:41:01,034 --> 00:41:04,379
VOICEOVER: I think Valentina is
keen to show me that there can
be
526
00:41:04,413 --> 00:41:06,586
a kind of normality here.
527
00:41:06,620 --> 00:41:09,827
Is this Ukrainian hospitality?
Exactly.
528
00:41:11,137 --> 00:41:14,586
My goodness. That's quite a
lot. Is she trying to get me
drunk?
529
00:41:14,620 --> 00:41:18,413
Exactly. Thank you very much.
How do we say cheers in
Ukrainian?
530
00:41:18,448 --> 00:41:20,413
Budmo.Budmo. OK.
531
00:41:24,448 --> 00:41:25,448
Whoa.
532
00:41:27,724 --> 00:41:31,103
Wow. You should eat something.
Oh, should I eat something as
well?
533
00:41:31,137 --> 00:41:35,275
Yeah.I think I need to.
That was quite strong.
534
00:41:35,310 --> 00:41:36,655
Thank you.
535
00:41:36,689 --> 00:41:39,896
Valentina has one more
treat for me...
536
00:41:39,931 --> 00:41:41,862
Is this the entertainment?
537
00:41:43,275 --> 00:41:46,482
..ably assisted by Dana.
538
00:41:46,517 --> 00:41:49,517
DANA HOWLS REPEATEDLY
539
00:42:04,517 --> 00:42:08,172
DANA HOWLS CONTINUOUSLY, BEN
LAUGHS
540
00:42:08,241 --> 00:42:10,413
Valentina, that...
541
00:42:10,482 --> 00:42:13,172
That... I will never forget
that.
542
00:42:13,206 --> 00:42:14,586
DANA BARKS
543
00:42:17,551 --> 00:42:21,344
Take Care. Thank you.
544
00:42:24,206 --> 00:42:26,344
That was kind of amazing.
545
00:42:26,379 --> 00:42:31,000
So much love and humour
and humanity and normalness.
546
00:42:32,724 --> 00:42:37,344
And then this, which is kind of
what people expect to see in
Chernobyl -
547
00:42:37,413 --> 00:42:41,310
abandonment and derelict
buildings.
548
00:42:41,344 --> 00:42:43,758
It's kind of a tale
of two worlds, isn't it?
549
00:42:43,793 --> 00:42:46,689
And it's just completely
unexpected, that.
550
00:42:46,724 --> 00:42:51,034
Because that's such a sign
of kind of hope and beauty
551
00:42:51,103 --> 00:42:55,241
amidst such wretchedness. Kind
of flips it all on its head.
552
00:43:02,206 --> 00:43:06,620
Self-settlers like Valentina
show that life can still exist
here,
553
00:43:06,655 --> 00:43:10,103
but I'm learning of a newer
generation who also want to
connect
554
00:43:10,137 --> 00:43:12,379
to this strange place.
555
00:43:12,448 --> 00:43:16,724
This evening I'm returning
to the ghost town of Pripyat.
556
00:43:16,758 --> 00:43:20,413
No-one can enter here
without a government permit.
557
00:43:20,482 --> 00:43:24,551
But not everyone heeds the
rules.
558
00:43:24,586 --> 00:43:27,241
What I've slowly realised
being here is that
559
00:43:27,275 --> 00:43:31,482
although it is a deserted city,
stuff still happens here,
560
00:43:31,551 --> 00:43:34,275
and police patrols
are one of the realities
561
00:43:34,344 --> 00:43:40,034
because a deserted city
attracts people for the wrong
reason.
562
00:43:40,068 --> 00:43:43,931
And I'm curious to find out
what sort of people do come
here and why.
563
00:43:45,448 --> 00:43:49,862
Ukrainian police carry out
24-hour surveillance of
Pripyat.
564
00:43:49,896 --> 00:43:54,655
Officer Mykhailo Kuzmenko and
his team are on the night
shift.
565
00:43:54,689 --> 00:43:57,344
What kind of things
do people get up to here?
566
00:44:21,275 --> 00:44:24,793
The illegal trespassers
are known as stalkers.
567
00:44:28,103 --> 00:44:29,620
They operate in groups,
568
00:44:29,655 --> 00:44:32,310
creating makeshift living
quarters inside buildings...
569
00:44:36,344 --> 00:44:38,000
..and even sleeping there.
570
00:44:40,827 --> 00:44:45,000
Stalkers seek out the most
dangerous and inaccessible
places...
571
00:44:47,068 --> 00:44:48,482
..to get their thrills.
572
00:44:52,344 --> 00:44:54,724
The dangers are clearly
massive.
573
00:44:54,793 --> 00:44:56,896
RAPID BEEPING
574
00:44:58,965 --> 00:45:01,931
Tonight, Mykhailo's team
believe some have been staying
in
575
00:45:01,965 --> 00:45:04,275
a high-rise on the outskirts
of the city.
576
00:45:04,344 --> 00:45:05,517
Going in.
577
00:45:23,827 --> 00:45:26,172
This is so strange.
578
00:45:26,206 --> 00:45:32,344
Kind of going from apartment to
apartment...looking for people.
579
00:45:48,206 --> 00:45:50,448
People have been graffitiing
here.
580
00:45:50,482 --> 00:45:54,413
They're pretty certain
that there is someone around.
581
00:45:54,448 --> 00:45:56,724
There's fresh footprints,
582
00:45:56,758 --> 00:45:59,379
fresh signs of people being
here.
583
00:46:01,448 --> 00:46:03,413
Look.
584
00:46:03,448 --> 00:46:05,620
So someone's been staying in
here?
585
00:46:08,965 --> 00:46:11,034
This is the Chernobyl squatter.
586
00:46:13,241 --> 00:46:14,827
Who'd have thought?
587
00:46:14,862 --> 00:46:17,896
It's a side to Chernobyl
I never even considered,
588
00:46:17,931 --> 00:46:22,482
that people would be attracted
here for the thrill of staying
over.
589
00:46:23,896 --> 00:46:28,896
I mean, pretty astonishing
views. I'm drawn to the window.
Wow.
590
00:46:31,551 --> 00:46:33,551
There's a little sledge there.
591
00:46:38,000 --> 00:46:40,344
Very easy to face of the facts
592
00:46:40,379 --> 00:46:44,103
that it was once
a thriving block of flats.
593
00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:53,379
Oh, yeah, look.
594
00:46:56,068 --> 00:46:59,931
So this is pretty strange. I
can't quite make heads nor
tails.
595
00:47:00,000 --> 00:47:02,827
I don't think any books or
anything were left in this
building,
596
00:47:02,896 --> 00:47:06,758
everything was kind of taken,
so it's almost like they've
created
597
00:47:06,793 --> 00:47:10,413
this little thing. It's got the
original Soviet flag,
598
00:47:10,448 --> 00:47:12,551
it's got a map of Pripyat.
599
00:47:12,586 --> 00:47:15,931
This is the social media
affect.
600
00:47:15,965 --> 00:47:18,862
It's even reached Chernobyl.
601
00:47:18,896 --> 00:47:21,551
Because people want to come
here, they want to make videos,
602
00:47:21,586 --> 00:47:27,586
they want to show off, they
want to, erm, create dangerous
stunts
603
00:47:27,620 --> 00:47:32,655
and, actually, this is sort of
their playground.
604
00:47:32,689 --> 00:47:35,586
That's a post-disaster effect
nowadays.
605
00:47:42,517 --> 00:47:45,758
The problem is so widespread,
it's common for the police to
arrest
606
00:47:45,793 --> 00:47:48,379
at least one stalker
on every patrol.
607
00:47:48,413 --> 00:47:51,137
If they get caught,
do they get arrested?
608
00:48:22,655 --> 00:48:25,793
Darkness has set in and it has
a whole different feel now.
609
00:48:27,448 --> 00:48:30,620
It's getting late,
and with no arrests tonight,
610
00:48:30,655 --> 00:48:33,586
the police head off to patrol
other parts of The Zone.
611
00:48:33,620 --> 00:48:36,689
I think it's fair to say
that's the strangest,
612
00:48:36,724 --> 00:48:40,724
most surreal night patrol
I've ever been on.
613
00:48:40,758 --> 00:48:44,103
It's just a whole other face
to Chernobyl.
614
00:48:47,241 --> 00:48:49,758
The stalkers might have eluded
us tonight,
615
00:48:49,793 --> 00:48:52,482
but we have another plan
to track them down.
616
00:48:56,103 --> 00:48:58,862
Nikolai, my minder,
reckons that tomorrow morning
617
00:48:58,931 --> 00:49:01,758
we'll definitely snare us
our stalker.
618
00:49:12,517 --> 00:49:16,344
I'm spending a week inside
the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone,
619
00:49:16,379 --> 00:49:19,137
a toxic wasteland
that I've discovered is now
620
00:49:19,172 --> 00:49:23,758
a major attraction for illegal
sightseers and thrill-seekers.
621
00:49:23,793 --> 00:49:27,448
I want to understand why these
so-called stalkers come here
622
00:49:27,517 --> 00:49:30,482
and what Chernobyl means to the
generation who weren't around
623
00:49:30,551 --> 00:49:32,413
at the time of the accident.
624
00:49:36,448 --> 00:49:40,275
Nikolai has managed to track
down a stalker through social
media
625
00:49:40,310 --> 00:49:43,448
and he's willing to talk to me.
626
00:49:43,482 --> 00:49:47,620
He's there. Down here
somewhere? Yes, on his way back
from The Zone.
627
00:49:49,068 --> 00:49:51,344
Stalkers enter The Zone
illegally
628
00:49:51,379 --> 00:49:54,517
so we're meeting
just outside the border.
629
00:49:54,551 --> 00:49:57,689
Apparently they're on their way
back from Pripyat
630
00:49:57,724 --> 00:50:00,551
so they well might have been
there when I was there.
631
00:50:01,862 --> 00:50:04,137
Hey, he's over there. Hey.
632
00:50:06,172 --> 00:50:08,482
No, no, we're good.OK.
633
00:50:11,275 --> 00:50:15,000
How long were you in Pripyat
for? Four days. Four days?
634
00:50:15,034 --> 00:50:18,034
And when you're in Pripyat,
where where do you stay?
635
00:50:18,068 --> 00:50:23,275
In my apartment. Your...? Yes,
I can show you my videos from
there.
636
00:50:23,310 --> 00:50:26,172
This is my house, where we
live.
637
00:50:27,448 --> 00:50:28,620
Good morning.
638
00:50:31,344 --> 00:50:34,758
How did you get in?
Illegally way.
639
00:50:36,068 --> 00:50:39,931
From the perimeter fence,
it's around 30km to Pripyat.
640
00:50:43,413 --> 00:50:45,620
The Zone is a vast wilderness.
641
00:50:45,655 --> 00:50:49,620
To avoid the police, stalkers
must trek through toxic forests
642
00:50:49,655 --> 00:50:51,448
and cross ice-cold rivers.
643
00:50:55,413 --> 00:50:58,172
So, crossing the river in your
pants, it's got to be cold.
644
00:50:58,206 --> 00:50:59,448
Argh!
645
00:50:59,482 --> 00:51:01,758
The water was this deep.
646
00:51:01,793 --> 00:51:07,413
With this backpack, I turn in
my hands, and go across this
river.
647
00:51:07,482 --> 00:51:09,206
You don't understand how it's
cold.
648
00:51:09,275 --> 00:51:10,689
Argh!
649
00:51:12,000 --> 00:51:15,344
Why do you do it?For me it is
just like a new adventure
650
00:51:15,379 --> 00:51:17,827
and every time it is very
different.
651
00:51:17,862 --> 00:51:21,137
For example,
I find police and run away.
652
00:51:21,172 --> 00:51:25,275
Second time I meet many
stalkers also illegally.
653
00:51:25,310 --> 00:51:29,275
It's like adventure
and shock for me.
654
00:51:29,310 --> 00:51:33,000
Reaching Pripyat is
the stalker's Holy Grail...
655
00:51:35,241 --> 00:51:38,034
..a place where they can share
their extreme thrill-seeking
656
00:51:38,068 --> 00:51:39,551
on social media.
657
00:51:43,517 --> 00:51:46,724
The dangers of this illegal
trespass are clear.
658
00:51:46,758 --> 00:51:49,517
That must be scary up there.
Wow. Look at that.
659
00:51:52,413 --> 00:51:55,034
Do you not worry about
radiation?
660
00:51:55,103 --> 00:51:57,103
I know where it's dangerous
661
00:51:57,172 --> 00:52:01,689
and it's, like four days
radiation not kill you, so why
not?
662
00:52:03,310 --> 00:52:04,310
See you.
663
00:52:07,344 --> 00:52:08,896
Fascinating, that.
664
00:52:08,931 --> 00:52:14,965
Here, I suppose, is in modern
Ukrainian youth who's embracing
665
00:52:15,000 --> 00:52:19,034
2020, 2021, and social media
666
00:52:19,103 --> 00:52:21,931
and making videos
and keeping stories alive.
667
00:52:21,965 --> 00:52:25,137
It's a form of history telling,
isn't it? Really.
668
00:52:25,172 --> 00:52:28,206
It's the new world
meeting the old world.
669
00:52:28,241 --> 00:52:29,758
It's kind of cool
670
00:52:29,793 --> 00:52:33,379
and weird and...unexpected.
671
00:52:40,068 --> 00:52:42,241
I'm back inside The Zone.
672
00:52:42,275 --> 00:52:44,482
Its size still astounds me.
673
00:52:44,517 --> 00:52:48,551
1,000 square miles of crumbling
villages, toxic forests
674
00:52:48,586 --> 00:52:50,551
and abandoned farmland.
675
00:52:51,896 --> 00:52:55,137
But when the eyes of the world
turned to Chernobyl
676
00:52:55,172 --> 00:52:59,517
they found far more here than
just a ruined nuclear plant.
677
00:52:59,551 --> 00:53:03,482
In a remote part of The Zone,
Nikolai has special knowledge
678
00:53:03,517 --> 00:53:07,000
of something that was once
classified at the highest
level.
679
00:53:10,103 --> 00:53:15,034
We are off to see something
secret, remains of the Cold
War.
680
00:53:15,068 --> 00:53:16,862
It's truly amazing.
681
00:53:18,137 --> 00:53:21,793
I'm going to a site that, at
the time of the Chernobyl
disaster,
682
00:53:21,827 --> 00:53:25,068
was marked on Soviet maps
as a children's camp.
683
00:53:26,241 --> 00:53:27,206
Wow.
684
00:53:29,344 --> 00:53:31,310
It had quite a climbing frame.
685
00:53:32,689 --> 00:53:34,620
You guys don't do things by
halves.
686
00:53:34,655 --> 00:53:38,068
This is an amazing feat
of Soviet engineering.
687
00:53:38,103 --> 00:53:41,586
The scale of this place.
I feel dwarfed by it.
688
00:53:41,620 --> 00:53:43,931
It's like a 50-storey building.
689
00:53:47,344 --> 00:53:49,068
So what exactly is this?
690
00:53:49,103 --> 00:53:53,275
During the Cold War, this was
able to detect incoming
missiles
691
00:53:53,310 --> 00:53:55,275
in case of a nuclear strike.
692
00:53:55,310 --> 00:53:58,931
Purpose of this was to give
a seven-minute warning
693
00:53:58,965 --> 00:54:01,137
to the Soviet authorities.
694
00:54:01,172 --> 00:54:04,724
And this was a technology
available only in Soviet
Union.
695
00:54:04,793 --> 00:54:07,896
So Americans didn't have
anything like this.
696
00:54:07,931 --> 00:54:11,103
The huge radar receiver
was built around the same time
697
00:54:11,137 --> 00:54:12,551
as the power plant,
698
00:54:12,620 --> 00:54:17,172
helping to conceal from the
Americans the 14,000 tonnes of
steel
699
00:54:17,206 --> 00:54:20,689
that needed to be brought
on site for its construction.
700
00:54:20,724 --> 00:54:25,275
It stands 150 metres high
and nearly a kilometre wide.
701
00:54:25,310 --> 00:54:27,793
So how did this actually work?
Radio waves?
702
00:54:27,827 --> 00:54:31,931
Yes, and the radio geeks in
the '80s, with their radio
scanners,
703
00:54:31,965 --> 00:54:34,413
could hear a sound
of the radar station.
704
00:54:34,448 --> 00:54:36,137
MECHANICAL CLICKING
705
00:54:36,172 --> 00:54:38,620
Some people were calling it
a Russian woodpecker
706
00:54:38,655 --> 00:54:40,931
because it sounded
a bit like woodpecker
707
00:54:40,965 --> 00:54:43,275
and it was clearly
coming from Russia,
708
00:54:43,310 --> 00:54:44,896
so that's why Russian
woodpecker.
709
00:54:44,931 --> 00:54:48,586
If you were picking that up, if
you were a ham radio operator
710
00:54:48,620 --> 00:54:52,620
in America, I can see how you'd
start thinking, "What is this?"
711
00:54:52,655 --> 00:54:56,517
Did the Americans know about
this? When did they first see
it?
712
00:54:56,551 --> 00:54:58,000
After the meltdown.
713
00:54:58,068 --> 00:55:00,965
When all the spy satellites
had turned their eyes here,
714
00:55:01,000 --> 00:55:03,620
they suddenly discovered
this massive frame
715
00:55:03,655 --> 00:55:05,620
in the middle of nowhere.
716
00:55:05,655 --> 00:55:07,551
That was quite a surprise.
717
00:55:07,586 --> 00:55:13,137
Because of its size and weird
look there are many conspiracy
theories,
718
00:55:13,206 --> 00:55:16,896
so some people believe that
this was a mind controller,
719
00:55:16,931 --> 00:55:21,482
like a brain scorcher of the
Soviet Union that was operating
720
00:55:21,517 --> 00:55:25,068
radio waves to control
and change human behaviour.
721
00:55:25,103 --> 00:55:28,931
I'm trying to imagine the
people who thought it could
control your mind.
722
00:55:28,965 --> 00:55:32,758
I feel I need a vodka now. You
do. Has it affected me?
723
00:55:32,793 --> 00:55:34,137
THEY LAUGH
724
00:55:34,172 --> 00:55:37,827
We're 100% sure
it's not operating now
725
00:55:37,862 --> 00:55:41,965
and we can sleep tight tonight.
We are not zombies yet.
726
00:55:48,793 --> 00:55:51,586
The radar network is another
example of the Soviets
727
00:55:51,620 --> 00:55:53,517
looking the wrong way.
728
00:55:53,586 --> 00:55:56,758
While they scanned the horizon
for the incoming threat,
729
00:55:56,827 --> 00:55:59,620
it was actually the failure of
their own nuclear technology
nearby
730
00:55:59,655 --> 00:56:03,000
that ultimately led to
the disaster they all feared.
731
00:56:07,724 --> 00:56:10,620
Now, there's just one
truly extraordinary place
732
00:56:10,655 --> 00:56:12,448
I'm yet to visit.
733
00:56:12,482 --> 00:56:17,344
Somewhere that very few will
ever get the opportunity to
see.
734
00:56:17,413 --> 00:56:22,034
Tomorrow I'm going directly
beneath the vast Chernobyl
Radiation Shield,
735
00:56:22,068 --> 00:56:24,344
getting as close as is possible
736
00:56:24,413 --> 00:56:28,000
to get to the very epicentre
of the explosion.
737
00:56:41,275 --> 00:56:44,344
I'm returning to the Chernobyl
Power Plant to gain access
738
00:56:44,379 --> 00:56:48,034
to something off limits
to almost all outsiders.
739
00:56:48,103 --> 00:56:51,068
Deep inside the enormous steel
arch,
740
00:56:51,103 --> 00:56:55,034
known as the New Safe
Confinement, is the entombed
remains
741
00:56:55,068 --> 00:57:00,000
of the ruined reactor itself,
the very epicentre of the
explosion.
742
00:57:00,034 --> 00:57:02,241
After months of discussions
743
00:57:02,275 --> 00:57:05,275
I've been granted
just a few minutes inside.
744
00:57:11,206 --> 00:57:15,172
This is pretty special to be
allowed to go into there.
745
00:57:15,206 --> 00:57:18,275
That's why there's lots of
people keeping an eye on me,
746
00:57:18,310 --> 00:57:23,344
lots of paperwork, it's taken a
long time to get these
permissions.
747
00:57:24,620 --> 00:57:26,275
Directly underneath the arch,
748
00:57:26,310 --> 00:57:29,896
radiation levels are even
higher than Control Room Number
4.
749
00:57:29,931 --> 00:57:32,000
It's kind of like going to war.
750
00:57:33,517 --> 00:57:37,620
I think we're about to head
into the final area.
751
00:57:49,758 --> 00:57:52,137
Wow. Oh, my goodness.
752
00:57:56,655 --> 00:58:00,275
This... This is unbelievable.
I mean, I can't...
753
00:58:00,344 --> 00:58:04,034
I can't quite believe
I'm actually in here.
754
00:58:07,172 --> 00:58:10,965
Behind the scaffold is the
crumbling concrete sarcophagus
755
00:58:11,000 --> 00:58:15,034
that was hastily erected to
entomb the blown apart reactor.
756
00:58:15,103 --> 00:58:18,068
If you can hear that beeping,
that was everyone's dosimeters
757
00:58:18,137 --> 00:58:21,206
from outside going off,
cos it's off the scale in here.
758
00:58:21,241 --> 00:58:24,724
We're up to 85, almost 90.
759
00:58:27,551 --> 00:58:31,448
Over time and exposed to the
elements, the concrete
sarcophagus
760
00:58:31,482 --> 00:58:35,931
has deteriorated
and is teetering on collapse.
761
00:58:36,000 --> 00:58:39,310
The entire structure will be
painstakingly disassembled,
762
00:58:39,344 --> 00:58:42,620
its still hot
radioactive core removed
763
00:58:42,655 --> 00:58:45,482
and placed in special storage
facilities.
764
00:58:45,517 --> 00:58:49,793
So when the workers eventually
start to dismantle this,
765
00:58:49,862 --> 00:58:55,068
how long can each worker
spend doing their job?
766
00:59:04,931 --> 00:59:06,827
It will all be robotics?Yeah.
767
00:59:08,000 --> 00:59:11,379
Very slowly everything will be
picked apart.
768
00:59:11,448 --> 00:59:15,275
This is modern day liquidators.
This is history repeating
itself.
769
00:59:15,310 --> 00:59:18,172
All those men that were
sweeping the debris off the
roof,
770
00:59:18,206 --> 00:59:19,965
it's going to happen again.
771
00:59:20,000 --> 00:59:23,965
Spearheaded by the European
Bank for Reconstruction and
Development,
772
00:59:24,000 --> 00:59:29,724
over 40 countries came together
to fund the £1.3 billion arch.
773
00:59:29,758 --> 00:59:31,551
For at least the next century,
774
00:59:31,586 --> 00:59:35,206
this extraordinary feat of
mega engineering will protect
775
00:59:35,241 --> 00:59:38,206
and enable the radioactive
ruins of reactor 4
776
00:59:38,241 --> 00:59:41,310
to eventually be made safe.
777
00:59:41,379 --> 00:59:44,827
Trying to explain to you now
my emotions, it's really weird,
778
00:59:44,862 --> 00:59:48,344
because I feel
surprisingly emotional
779
00:59:48,413 --> 00:59:51,689
to see what is arguably
780
00:59:51,724 --> 00:59:54,448
a wretched, terrible place.
781
00:59:56,068 --> 00:59:58,241
But what I see
coming in here is hope
782
00:59:58,310 --> 01:00:02,689
and that's what I love cos this
is the hope of what technology
can do.
783
01:00:02,724 --> 01:00:06,655
This is the hope of what people
collaborating, multi nations
came
784
01:00:06,724 --> 01:00:11,275
together to create this dome
and protect it for another 100
years
785
01:00:11,310 --> 01:00:16,241
and isn't that incredible that
over the next couple of
decades, robots,
786
01:00:16,275 --> 01:00:19,620
you know, AI, artificial
intelligence, that so many
people
787
01:00:19,655 --> 01:00:21,724
think could ruin the world,
788
01:00:21,793 --> 01:00:25,724
could actually help save it
and preserve it.
789
01:00:28,241 --> 01:00:32,965
So my emotions right now are of
great pride for this country,
790
01:00:33,034 --> 01:00:35,965
for everyone who worked on it
791
01:00:36,034 --> 01:00:39,310
and showing what humanity can
do.
792
01:00:41,896 --> 01:00:45,793
BEEPING
793
01:00:45,827 --> 01:00:48,034
Got about 30 seconds left in
here.
794
01:00:48,103 --> 01:00:50,724
You can hear everyone's
dosimeters going off.
795
01:00:51,931 --> 01:00:55,862
Whoo, gosh.
Chris, we have to get out.
796
01:00:55,931 --> 01:00:58,344
Chris, we've gotta go.Yeah.
797
01:01:00,517 --> 01:01:02,068
Our time is up.
798
01:01:05,275 --> 01:01:09,379
Everything is checked for
contamination but we're all
clear.
799
01:01:15,724 --> 01:01:19,551
The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is
still a long way from being a
safe,
800
01:01:19,586 --> 01:01:24,689
habitable environment but
slowly green shoots are
emerging.
801
01:01:24,724 --> 01:01:27,793
The wider Zone itself has
become a giant laboratory
802
01:01:27,827 --> 01:01:31,034
where scientists and
conservationists can now
803
01:01:31,068 --> 01:01:34,482
safely study the effects
of radiation and what happens
804
01:01:34,517 --> 01:01:37,310
to nature when humans
disappear.
805
01:01:38,689 --> 01:01:41,448
What is this we're going into
now?
806
01:01:49,482 --> 01:01:54,103
Biologist Marina Shkvyria has
been studying wildlife in The
Zone.
807
01:01:55,206 --> 01:01:59,827
So, all of this here has grown
since this was all abandoned?
808
01:02:10,068 --> 01:02:12,413
What's interesting is
when I look at my dosimeter,
809
01:02:12,482 --> 01:02:15,310
it's a little bit higher in
here, perhaps, and I know that
810
01:02:15,344 --> 01:02:17,724
if I go down towards the moss,
811
01:02:17,758 --> 01:02:22,793
it goes up quite a lot and yet
nature has flourished here.
812
01:02:54,034 --> 01:02:57,310
Marina and other scientists
believe that without hunting,
813
01:02:57,344 --> 01:03:00,344
farming and the destruction
of natural habitats,
814
01:03:00,379 --> 01:03:04,275
The Zone is becoming
an unlikely wildlife sanctuary.
815
01:03:07,275 --> 01:03:09,517
We're tracking wolves.
816
01:03:13,724 --> 01:03:15,551
Have you found anything,
Marina?
817
01:03:15,586 --> 01:03:18,551
Yeah. You can see tracks, yeah?
818
01:03:18,586 --> 01:03:21,137
This one?Oh, yes, I've got it.
819
01:03:21,172 --> 01:03:23,379
How many wolves do you think
have come through here?
820
01:03:32,000 --> 01:03:36,379
There are plenty of wolf tracks
but in an area the size of
Luxembourg,
821
01:03:36,413 --> 01:03:39,379
seeing them was always going to
be a long shot.
822
01:03:43,275 --> 01:03:46,931
Luckily, Marina and her team
have caught glimpses of the
wildlife
823
01:03:46,965 --> 01:03:49,586
that live in The Zone
on remote cameras.
824
01:03:53,310 --> 01:03:54,689
So, this is from a drone?
825
01:03:56,689 --> 01:03:59,551
That's a beautiful shot.
Wow, look at that,
826
01:03:59,586 --> 01:04:01,655
galloping off across the
landscape.
827
01:04:03,000 --> 01:04:04,551
How beautiful is that?
828
01:04:06,448 --> 01:04:09,379
Marina, how did these horses
get here in the first place?
829
01:04:09,413 --> 01:04:11,000
Were they introduced?
830
01:04:30,965 --> 01:04:33,758
And wolves!
Look at that. Incredible.
831
01:04:36,517 --> 01:04:40,655
Just amazing to see the array
of animals on those camera
traps.
832
01:04:40,724 --> 01:04:43,758
Moose, deer, wolves, lynx.
833
01:04:43,793 --> 01:04:45,655
There's even bears.
834
01:04:45,689 --> 01:04:51,068
So many animals living in this
extraordinary Exclusion Zone.
835
01:05:05,827 --> 01:05:09,206
The planet faces
unprecedented challenges -
836
01:05:09,241 --> 01:05:12,413
many of them, like Chernobyl,
of our own making.
837
01:05:14,310 --> 01:05:16,275
I came here looking for hope.
838
01:05:17,931 --> 01:05:21,103
What I've discovered here
in Chernobyl is that this is
839
01:05:21,137 --> 01:05:24,689
supposed to be a radioactive
wasteland for tens,
840
01:05:24,724 --> 01:05:27,551
maybe hundreds
of thousands of years...
841
01:05:29,379 --> 01:05:31,379
..and yet nature's reclaiming
it.
842
01:05:37,206 --> 01:05:38,620
I mean, look at this.
843
01:05:38,655 --> 01:05:42,103
This, for me, is really
exciting part of the Chernobyl
story
844
01:05:42,137 --> 01:05:45,482
cos it's the accidental hope
that came from it.
845
01:05:45,551 --> 01:05:49,344
Some people are calling this
the European Amazon.
846
01:05:49,379 --> 01:05:53,862
This is almost the greatest,
accidental rewilding project
847
01:05:53,896 --> 01:06:00,827
in the world because where
there was wretchedness and
disaster
848
01:06:00,862 --> 01:06:05,413
has come this extraordinary
return to the wild.
849
01:06:23,586 --> 01:06:26,517
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