35 Years Later – My Photographs From The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone

Today marks 35 years since the worst nuclear disaster in history.

Every year, on the anniversary, past and present residents of the Zone come together. They gather at the same spot every year, at the foot of a great metal angel statue. Each person holds candles, they share stories and gather together to mark the day.

You see, Chernobyl is no longer barren of life. Everywhere there are new signs of hope emerging. This is both a day for sadness, as well as optimism for the future. Efforts continue to clean up and regenerate the region.

26th April 1986 – The Day Of The Nuclear Meltdown

At 1.24am an explosion tore apart Reactor Number Four of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The explosion is estimated to have been equivalent to 66 tones of TNT. Temperature readings seconds before the explosion indicated that the reactor core reached 4,650 degrees Celsius. To put this enormous number into perspective, the surface of the sun is 5,5000 degrees Celsius. Fires raged at the power plant for almost two weeks. The tall plume of radioactive debris and gases ejected into the atmosphere were swept north and westwards by the wind.

The devastating effects of the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster were soon felt across the globe. The fallout fell over much of Europe over the coming months.

Evacuation and setting up the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone ( Zone of Alienation)

A 30km Exclusion Zone was set up, and the first 50,000 residents of this area were evacuated. This evacuated area is also called “Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Zone of Alienation”.

My visit to the chernobyl exclusion zone 2016

I visited the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone in the summer of 2016. Here are some of my photographs from my journey. If you want to see more and read more history about each location, you can find much more on my Chernobyl Gallery page.