Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!mcvax!ukc!dcl-cs!de From: de@comp.lancs.ac.uk (David England) Newsgroups: net.followup Subject: Re: Russian Nuclear Accident Message-ID: <145@comp.lancs.ac.uk> Date: Wed, 7-May-86 06:12:55 EDT Article-I.D.: comp.145 Posted: Wed May 7 06:12:55 1986 Date-Received: Wed, 14-May-86 01:34:41 EDT References: <228@scbhq.UUCP> Reply-To: de@comp.lancs.ac.uk (David England) Organization: Department of Computing at Lancaster University, UK. Lines: 42 In article <228@scbhq.UUCP> sdp@scbhq.UUCP writes: > >U.S.A. - Last night on our local and national news, there was an announcement >that the Russian's have experienced a nuclear accident, some where in south-west >Russia. The news report said that it is believed there was a melt-down >(China-Syndrome) in one of their nuclear power plants. Later on the news >reported that it was believed there were 1000's injured in Kiev, the capital >of the Ukrainian S.S.R. Kiev is located in the north-central part of U.S.S.R. > >Europe, what is happening over there? I would greatly appreciate reading your >first hand reports, and comments. > The graphite core of the reactor caught fire and blew the top off the building. Unfortunately the Russians did not tell anyone about this and the first reports of anything unusual came when the Swedes reported high levels of radiation over their country. The Russians eventually said that 2 people had died and some 200+ were taken to hospital. However most Western European experts reckon many more are affected and that much of the USSR's prime agricultural land is contaminated. The fallout has wandered over much of Western Europe including Britain. Our Government says the levels here are not dangerous but ground level radiation in this spot is 40x higher than usual and we've been advised not to drink rainwater. Imports of food from the Eastern Bloc are banned and people are being advised not to travel there. The Russians now say (7-May-86) that the reactor is 'stable', but I believe it could still be giving out radioactivity. This is the situation as I understand it at present - as a computer hacker not a physicist. In the long term the Russians could food shortages due to contamination, a big rise in cancers over the next 20-40 years and a possible dent in their industrial expansion programs. David England -- "Welcome to Airstrip One" --------- UUCP : ..!seismo!mcvax!ukc!dcl-cs!de ARPA : de%lancs.comp@ucl-cs JANET : de@uk.ac.lancs.comp PHONE : +44 524 65201 Ext. 4586 POST : Univ. of Lancaster, Dept of Computing, Lancaster LA1 4YR, UK. PROJECT : Alvey ECLIPSE User Interface