Photo Credit: “The dangerous view- Pripyat- Chernobyl” Ben Fairless

“They call it red forest because this is strong radiation. The leaves of trees became red.” – Gennady Milinevsky, University of Kiev

With all the pro nuclear spin in the news now it can be difficult to understand the scope of the disaster that is the radiation leaking from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Not only are there huge long term risks for those near the fallout, the nature of this disaster is worldwide.

Photo Above: “After the explosion at Reactor 4 the people of Pripyat flocked on the railway bridge just outside the city to get a good view of the reactor and see what had happened. Initially, everyone was told that radiation level was minimal and that they were safe. Little did they know that much of the radiation had been blown onto this bridge in a huge spike. The levels here were very near lethal.”

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Description: As Japan struggles to contain the fallout from four failed nuclear reactors, the world has developed renewed interest in Chernobyl, the site of the most serious nuclear accident to date. NewsHour Science Correspondent Miles O’Brien found that nearly 25 years after the Chernobyl meltdown, signs of the accident still exist.