The Ukraine

The Ukraine The Ukraine is the name given to what is now the country Ukraine by Russia when they controlled it as a state. It is the second largest country in Europe. It has 42 million people (down 4 million in the last 10 years) and has a 99.7 % literacy rate (CIA fact book) Until 1986, Ukraine was known as the ‘breadbasket of Europe’ because it was the most fertile region in Europe and produced most of the grain for Eastern Europe. It also has rich natural resource stores and is the site of the great pipeline that takes natural gas from Russia to the rest of Europe.

chernobyl In 1986, a nuclear power plant in the city of Chernobyl was the site of the worst nuclear accident in history. There was an explosion at the power plant and the plume of radioactive fallout spread all over Europe. 400,000 people had to be evacuated, and a 30 mile zone around the plant are still uninhabitable.

What did they do to extinguish the fire in the reactor? To put out the fire and stop the release of radioactive materials, firefighters pumped cooling water into the core of the reactor during the first ten hours after the accident. This unsuccessful attempt to put out the fire was then abandoned. From 27 April to 5 May, more than 30 military helicopters flew over the burning reactor. They dropped 2400 tons of lead and 1800 tons of sand to try to smother the fire and absorb the radiation.

It didn’t work though… In fact it made the situation worse: heat accumulated beneath the dumped materials. The temperature in the reactor rose again, and increased the quantity of radiation emerging from it. In the final phase of firefighting, the core of the reactor was cooled with nitrogen. Not until 6 May were the fire and the radioactive emissions under control.

What happened to the workers and firemen? “The 600 men of the plant's fire service and the operating crew, who were employed in firefighting, were the most severely irradiated group. 134 of them received doses of radiation between 0.7 and 13 sieverts (Sv). This means that within a few hours they received a quantity of radiation up to 13 000 times higher than 1 millisievert: in the European Union, 1 millisievert per year is the maximum effective dose of radiation to which individuals in the population near a nuclear power station should be exposed.” http://www.chernobyl.info/index.php?userhash=22363864&navID=11&lID=2

What happened to the workers and firemen? 31 workers died shortly afterwards. We think around 800, 000 men were involved in the clean-up operations in Chernobyl up until 1989. Today, they are still suffering from the damage to their health. 300 000 of them are believed to have received doses of radiation of more than 0.5 Sv. We do not know how many others died with accuracy because of the secrecy of the USSR.

chernobyl The one benefit to this incident is that what was becoming a highly industrialized sector has been reclaimed by nature and is a nature preserve with many rare species of plants and animals coming back from the brink of extinction.

ukraine The Ukraine was part of the Russian and Soviet Empires. It is also the seat of the first center of power in Russia, Kiev. It has been settled at least since the 700s AD. When the Soviet Union took control of the Ukraine in 1921, agricultural collectivization was forced on the Ukrainians. Millions of Ukrainians died in ‘artificial famine’ at the hands of Stalin. (Holodomor)

Ukraine in WWII Because of their location and the large number of Jews, The Ukraine was heavily affected by WWII and Hitler’s policies. At least 600,000 Ukrainian Jews died in the Holocaust, mostly at the hands of Einsatzgruppen. Babi Yar, a ravine in Kiev, was the site of the worst massacre of civilians in WWII. On September 29th and 30th, 1941, 34,000 Jews and 60,000 Ukrainians were murdered and thrown in the ravine. Later, the Nazis would bring more Jews and Ukranians to Babi Yar and add to the mass grave.

Babi Yar

www.jewishgen.org

Ukraine When the Soviet Union fell, Ukraine became independent. They are still trying to create a strong, independent, democratic country. They still have problems dealing with traces of the former Soviet Union. *******