Russian soldiers who occupied the site of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine travelled through the most heavily contaminated area, the so-called Red Forest, without any protective measures. According to the Reuters news agency, members of the army may be suffering from radiation sickness.
Reuters reached two employees of the Chernobyl power plant who were scheduled to be at the site on February 24. According to the callers of the news agency, the soldiers driving through the Red Forest in heavy military vehicles have stirred up radioactive dust from the ground. On 25 March this was noted by Ukraine’s State Nuclear Supervisory Authority – an increase in radiation control values near Chernobyl was reported.
The invasion of the Red Forest was a “suicide” for the Russian soldiers, as it allowed radioactive substances to enter their organisms”, said a plant worker quoted by Reuters.
The Agency could not independently determine the level of radiation that was then near the Red Forest.
The Red Forest is located about 2 km south of the displaced city of Pripyat in the Chernobyl demarcation zone in northern Ukraine. The forest is named after the reddish colour of the trees that died after the disaster at the Chernobyl power plant in April 1986 because they absorbed a large dose of radiation. The environment of the Red Forest is considered to be one of the most contaminated areas in the world.