Many Moldovans sent to Chernobyl did not know what awaited them

Many of the Moldovans who were taken to deal with the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster did not know where they went. When they were on the spot, they were deprived of documents so that they could not run back, Mihai Oncea, head of the Ciocana-based society “Chernobyl”, has told Info-Prim Neo. In 1986, Mihai Oncea, who is a serviceman by occupation, attended refresher courses in Moscow. The nuclear reactor exploded on April 26. The people found out about it the second day, from the speech of the first secretary of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev. Initially, they said the officers attending the courses will be also involved in the cleanup, but it was then decided to allow them to finish them. “I was sent to Chernobyl on July 3, 1987 by order of the general staff of the USSR. I was in a unit with another 13 officers and was responsible for the deactivation of the plant’s block 4. I, as a senior officer, was in charge of the solders working there,” stated Oncea. It was decided to remove the concrete blocks from block 4. They were taken about 40 km away and covered with sand, stones and asphalt. The soldiers threw gravel into reactors from the roofs of blocks 3 and 4. Mihai Oncea had stayed in Chernobyl for a month, but many persons remained there for four to six months. “I knew where I was going. I knew it was radiation, but we did not have special costumes. We worked in military uniforms,” said the head of “Chernobyl” society. Many Moldovans were gathered to commissariats in a hurry and weren’t told where they went. They were told they will take part in military operations and the recruits weren’t subjected to medical examination. “Recruits were sent in May, when the level of radiation was the highest. They were told the truth when they arrived, but they could not go back. Those who left were considered deserters and could be tried,” said Mihai Oncea. The cleanup operations lasted for two years, from 1986 until 1988. Nobody returned healthy from Chernobyl. Most of the participants in the cleanup are invalids of the second and third disability degrees. Thirty-three of the members of the Ciocana-based society “Chernobyl” passed away. The Chernobyl disaster occurred on April 26, 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. An explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive contamination into the atmosphere, which spread over much of Western USSR and Europe. It is widely considered to have been the worst nuclear power plant accident in history. The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles, crippling the Soviet economy. An UNSCEAR report places the total confirmed deaths from radiation at 64 as of 2008. The Chernobyl Forum estimates that the eventual death toll could reach 4,000 among those exposed to the highest levels of radiation. This figure includes about 50 emergency workers who died of acute radiation syndrome, nine children who died of thyroid cancer and an estimated total of 3,940 deaths from radiation-induced cancer and leukemia. An area extending 31 km in all directions from the plant is known as the "zone of alienation." It is largely uninhabited, except for a few residents who have refused to leave. The area has largely reverted to forest. Ukrainian officials estimate the area will not be safe for human life again for another 20,000 years.