A drone strike damaged the protective shell covering Reactor No. 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, sparking concerns over safety and radiation levels. Ukrainian officials say the strike was deliberate, while Russia denies involvement.
Ukraine’s worst nuclear disaster occurred in 1986 when a safety test went catastrophically wrong, releasing radioactive material into the environment. The current protective shell, completed in 2019, is intended to prevent such accidents.
Workers at the Chernobyl plant are facing a daunting task: repairing a 540-square-foot hole blown in by a Russian drone. The strike occurred on Friday morning and damaged the safety cover, putting the reactor’s highly radioactive debris at risk.
Despite the damage, radiation levels remain normal, according to Ukrainian authorities. However, experts warn that the breach could lead to a disaster if not properly sealed.
“It was never designed for a deliberate military attack,” said Shaun Burnie, a senior nuclear specialist at Greenpeace. “We’ve been investigating Russian war crimes, and this looks like another one.”
Ukrainian officials have displayed parts of the drone used in the strike, which they claim is linked to Russia’s Shahed drone system. An initial analysis suggests that the drone was guided by preset coordinates for an intended target.
President Volodymyr Zelensky described the incident as “audacious,” while Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov denied Russian involvement, suggesting it may have been a Ukrainian hoax.
The damaged protective shell will take months to repair, and workers must now figure out a more permanent solution. The situation highlights the ongoing tensions between Ukraine and Russia over nuclear safety and security in the region.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/14/world/europe/chernobyl-drone-blast-scene.html