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2004-03-06 Caucasus

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Posted by JerseyMike 2004-03-06 7:59:52 AM|| || Front Page|| [8 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Eerie... It's like the beginning of that movie "28 Days Later", only worse because it's real. Good site and great pix--I just hope that luscious brunette didn't stay there too long!

Posted by Dar 2004-3-6 10:08:55 AM|| 2004-3-6 10:08:55 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 Regarding the brunette: I found this story on Slashdot and followed a copious discussion where I didn't see any one of the geeks taking much note of her. Personally, I'm intrigued by a good looking gal that likes to ride a high spec motorbike at speed through a nuclear wasteland. Good wry sense of humor, too.

Posted by Classic_Liberal 2004-3-6 12:42:23 PM|| 2004-3-6 12:42:23 PM|| Front Page Top

#3 I was kinda freaked by the shot of the abandoned helicopers Hips (?). I'll bet those were the ones that were used to drop the graphite and cement. That's guts.

Posted by Shipman 2004-3-6 12:48:01 PM|| 2004-3-6 12:48:01 PM|| Front Page Top

#4 A suitcase full of anthrax could have the same effect.

Posted by Rawsnacks 2004-3-6 12:55:11 PM|| 2004-3-6 12:55:11 PM|| Front Page Top

#5 The helicopters are mostly MI-10's, NATO codename "HOOK". Each of them can carry up to 70 troops - they're huge. There is one HIP - on the far right. You can see how much smaller it is. The HIP is comparable to our Blackhawk in size (slightly smaller).

A suitcase full of anthrax could have the same effect.
The anthrax would have the same effect short-term, but in two years the threat would be totally gone. The radiation from Chernobyl will make Pripyat virtually uninhabitable for 5000 years.

Posted by Old Patriot 2004-3-6 1:39:41 PM|| [http://users.codenet.net/mweather/default.htm] 2004-3-6 1:39:41 PM|| Front Page Top

#6 Actually Chernobyl radiation is more akin to very dirty bombs or dud nukes. If you look at the Pak Indian tit for tat tests a few years back you see that claimed yields were much larger for both than the actual very small yields. In addition the Indian H-bomb looked like a fizzled dud. So, at least the Indian bombs would likly leave deadlands like you see around Chernobyl.

Posted by 3dc 2004-3-6 1:56:29 PM|| 2004-3-6 1:56:29 PM|| Front Page Top

#7 wasn't thier 100 or more tons of this radioactive shit that went boom, not sure maybe it was 16 tons but either way thats gonna cause alot of shitty smoke and dust thats not good to be settling on or in you, i can see the chinese having a chernobyl type adventure soon - isn't that big dam they built also cracking up? As Allen is my witness

Posted by Jon Shep U.K 2004-3-6 2:02:57 PM|| 2004-3-6 2:02:57 PM|| Front Page Top

#8 wasn't thier 100 or more tons of this radioactive shit that went boom
Actually, I think the major problem was caused by using graphite in the reactor core as a containment. The graphite caught fire and burned for days. Needless to say, it was also highly radioactive at the same time, creating not only a toxic cloud of smoke and dust, but a radioactive one as well.

I was in England at the time (RAF Alconbury), and then moved on to central Europe. At both places I worked with units that tried to track the smoke cloud (at one point it stretched from Chernobyl to the North Sea)and radioactive particulates that filtered out of it. Let's just say this is probably the largest manmade disaster of all times, and we won't have the final results for a thousand years or more...

Posted by Old Patriot 2004-3-6 2:41:58 PM|| [http://users.codenet.net/mweather/default.htm] 2004-3-6 2:41:58 PM|| Front Page Top

#9 Jersey - I'd say this is exactly what the WoT is about. Good post.

Posted by Matt 2004-3-6 4:05:16 PM|| 2004-3-6 4:05:16 PM|| Front Page Top

#10 Saw a safty film on Chernobyl while taking Hazmat training.2 things stuck with me the most:
1)While interviewing one of the Russian scientist's who had just finished an inspection of the sarcaphageous this Nuke scientist took off his paperdust ask off and shook the dust out.

There wer 3000 voulinter military whose job it was to pick-up 2 graphite blocks(about 30lbs each)and throw them in the hole in the roof of the containment building.10 years later 2000 soldiers were dead from various radiation releated illness.

Posted by Raptor 2004-3-6 5:45:13 PM|| 2004-3-6 5:45:13 PM|| Front Page Top

#11 This is a prime example of Soviet Brute Force science/economics. They needed electricity and weren't too concerned about safety (gotta break a few eggs to make an omelet).

The RBMK is one of the world's worst designs. Not only is it bad engineering, it uses the Soviet equivalent of a Sear's Garden Shed for its containment building.

When the accident happened, the Sovs were running a test to determine if they could use the coasting down turbine (following the tripped reactor) to supply power for a few more seconds. The shift guys got overconfident and violated a huge amount of procedures. The resulting steam explosion blew the reactor apart and the graphite (what were they thinking - it's cheap!) caught fire.

The initial response was by the local firefighters some of who sensibly refused to go into the high rad area. Rumor has it these guys were shot to encourage the others. Then the army arrived and sacrificed their soldiers in two minute suicide runs to toss pieces of graphite back into the smoldering crater of the reactor building.

Actually though, things have been improving. The radiation levels have dropped and a lot of the residual stuff is slowly being washed down the Pripyat to the sea. I imagine a lot of people will die from a variety of cancers but this is Russia and a lot of them are going to croak from Vodka/Cigarettes and just plain bad living. It will be difficult determining what event is to blame but I'm sure Chernobyl will be the one most trumpeted.

Regards,
Dave

Posted by DaveMac 2004-3-6 7:26:50 PM|| 2004-3-6 7:26:50 PM|| Front Page Top

08:34 Raptor
03:03 B
00:12 Jack Deth
23:51 3dc
23:38 Mike Sylwester
23:20 Fred
23:15 tu3031
23:12 tu3031
23:09 Robert Crawford
23:09 Korora
23:04 Matt
22:57 tu3031
22:57 Super Hose
22:54 Super Hose
22:27 Frank G
22:15 Super Hose
22:09 dataman1
22:06 Ptah
21:54 Valentine
21:41 Ptah
21:40 Pappy
21:39 Ptah
21:34 BH
21:18 Ptah