Only in three days will it be known what really happened at Rostov NPP: analysis of the situation with experts
19 July 2024 19:30
ЕКСКЛЮЗИВ
on 19 July, various media outlets began to report on a radioactive cloud allegedly moving into the interior of Russia, towards Saratov. It was allegedly due to a radiation accident at the Rostov Nuclear Power Plant.
According to media reports, Rostov released radioactive isotopes with radioactivity of up to one and a half million curies into the atmosphere. And although, according to Rosatom, the radioactive background is normal, in fact, it has already exceeded the norm by 75 times. The Russian government is carefully concealing this.
“The radiation emission from the Rostov NPP, in Saratov in the morning they were going to cancel classes in schools because of the radioactive cloud that was moving towards the city due to the nighttime accident in Rostov. But they decided to keep quiet. Friday and the weekend are coming up. The cloud was detected by satellites over the city as early as 10:30 am,” VERTICAL Telegram channel
Can Russia hide a nuclear disaster?
Mark Zheleznyak, professor at the Institute of Radioecology at Fukushima University, explains that if Russia hides the radiation hazard, it will cost them dearly. Specially for
“If you look at the map of Russia, it is green. The only yellow dot is in the Caucasus Mountains. However, we know from the school curriculum that the radiation background is slightly higher in the mountains. The measurement date is today [19 July – ed.], and I believe that this is real data. Because if something really happened, the Russians would have closed this data altogether,” Mark Zheleznyak
The professor also emphasises that there are three systems of pollution control in any country. There is a radiation monitoring system, a remote monitoring system, and a satellite monitoring system. The satellite detects thermal explosions and the so-called clouds cannot be hidden. The third system is when each country is equipped with sensors from another country along its borders.
For example, when the Fukushima accident happened, traces of radioactivity from Fukushima were measured in Kyiv. They had no impact on health, but they were measured, says Mark Zheleznyak.
“It’s hard to imagine that there was a major accident with a health impact and the Russians are falsifying the map. Russia is a member of the IAEA, and they have to report information there. If they break these rules, they will become outcasts. The IAEA is silent, and our border stations do not measure radiation. My conclusion is that these are all rumours,” Mark Zheleznyak
A vapour-gas mixture has been released in Russia
According to the international scale of emergencies at nuclear power facilities, Russia must provide an assessment of the situation. So far, no such information has been received from Russia. The Centre for Forecasting the Consequences of Radiation Accidents of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre provided a special comment for Kommersant Ukrainsky.
According to insiders, there was a release of a steam-gas mixture there [at Rostov NPP – ed. There may be another system that accumulates the vapour-gas phase. It is possible that a number of elements that were used for technological purposes and passed through the irradiation zone in the reactor (this is the cooling system) – this vapour-gas mixture was released into the atmosphere on 17 July,” an employee of the Centre for Forecasting the Consequences of Radiation Accidents of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre
Where can the radioactive cloud from Russia go?
The Centre for Forecasting the Consequences of Radiation Accidents of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre has estimated the movement of a cloud that could theoretically be radioactive.
“Given the weather forecast, in three days the cloud will travel from the Rostov nuclear power plant to the south-eastern part of Ukraine (Donetsk and Luhansk regions). It will move on to Zaporizhzhya region and Crimea. Then it will enter the Black Sea and descend to Turkey. It may enter the territory of Romania. However, the wind direction may change”, an employee of the Centre for Forecasting the Consequences of Radiation Accidents of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre
However, the Centre for Forecasting the Consequences of Radiation Accidents of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre notes that it is not yet known whether the cloud is radioactive.
There is a network of radio-electronic observations on the territory of Ukraine, which includes about 150 points. There are automated systems for monitoring the radiation state of the environment. This means that at all monitoring posts, experts will detect certain changes in the radioactive state. So far, nothing of the kind has been observed.
Author – Anastasia Fedor
