Chernobyl Effects Linger On

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• published: 20 May 2016
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Radiation from the Chernobyl disaster spread across borders, and people in the region are still struggling with the effects 30 years later. A steel and concrete shroud now encases the destroyed plant. NHK obtained video recorded earlier this month inside the Number 4 reactor at the wrecked plant. Melted nuclear fuel litters the floor. Radiation levels remain extremely high. The amount would surpass Japan's criteria for radiation exposure for 1 year in just 7 seconds. When the reactor exploded, radioactive substances wafted over the land. It contaminated Ukraine, Russia and over 20 percent of the land in Belarus. Checkpoints still stand at the edge of the restricted area. Three decades after the accident, authorities still prohibit the public from entering. But leaders in Belarus are changing their position. President Alexander Lukashenko is promoting a project to rehabilitate abandoned settlements. The Buda-Koshelevo district is in the Gomel region, about 160 kilometers from the plant. It had been designated a "contaminated zone." The authorities lifted the order in January, saying that radiation is now below the government's limit. And they've been cutting back on subsidies for residents. The accommodation required for children while medical tests are being carried out used to be free. But it now costs about $450 each time. Parts of school meals are no longer free either. Families like the Kostunovs say the change has put them in a bind. They say they need assistance, partly because of long-term medical concerns. Natalya has had surgery for thyroid cancer. She and her husband have 4 children and they worry that that the youngsters may not receive proper care because of the cost. "Is this place safe? I don't think so," says Natalya's husband, Dmitry. "There used to be a lot of support programs, but not anymore. We need government help to live here," Natalya says. An expert who took part in a study on the accident agrees. "I don't think we can say it's so safe that government assistance is no longer necessary," says physicist Yuri Voronezhtsev. Analysts speculate one reason the government is slashing support is a sluggish economy. Decades later, the Chernobyl accident continues to cast a shadow that stretches far and wide.