The April 1986 disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukraine was
the product of a flawed Soviet reactor design coupled with serious mistakes
made by the plant operators in the context of a system where training was
minimal. It was a direct consequence of Cold War isolation and the resulting
lack of any safety culture.
The accident destroyed the Chernobyl-4 reactor and killed 30 people, including
28 from radiation exposure. A further 209 on site and involved with the clean-up
were treated for acute radiation poisoning and among these, 134 cases were
confirmed (all of whom apparently recovered). Nevertheless 19 of these
subsequently died from effects attributable to the accident. Nobody off-site
suffered from acute radiation effects. However, large areas of Belarus, Ukraine,
Russia and beyond were contaminated in varying degrees.
The Chernobyl disaster was a unique event and the only accident in the history
of commercial nuclear power where radiation-related fatalities occurred.
However, its relevance to the rest of the nuclear industry outside the then
Eastern Bloc is minimal.

The accident
 

On 25 April, prior to a routine shut-down, the reactor crew at Chernobyl-4 began
preparing for a test to determine how long turbines would spin and supply power
following a loss of main electrical power supply. Similar tests had already been
carried out at Chernobyl and other plants, despite the fact that these reactors
were known to be very unstable at low power settings.
A series of operator actions, including the disabling of automatic shutdown
mechanisms, preceded the attempted test early on 26 April. As flow of coolant
water diminished, power output increased. When the operator moved to shut
down the reactor from its unstable condition arising from previous errors, a
peculiarity of the design caused a dramatic power surge.
The fuel elements ruptured and the resultant explosive force of steam lifted off
the cover plate of the reactor, releasing fission products to the atmosphere. A
second explosion threw out fragments of burning fuel and graphite from the core
and allowed air to rush in, causing the graphite moderator to burst into flames.
There is some dispute among experts about the character of this second
explosion. The graphite burned for nine days, causing the main release of
radioactivity into the environment. A total of about 14 EBq (1018 Bq) of
radioactivity was released, half of it being biologically-inert noble gases. See also
appended sequence of events.
Some 5000 tonnes of boron, dolomite, sand, clay and lead were dropped on to
the burning core by helicopter in an effort to extinguish the blaze and limit the
release of radioactive particles.