Episode three of Chernobyl saw the efforts of the miners, who were brought in to avert further disaster after it emerged the molten core of the nuclear power plant threatened to burn into the ground and poison the Black Sea forever.
The HBO and Sky series saw miners from Donbas and Tula were drafted in by the Soviet authorities to dig under the plant to instal cooling machinery to reduce the temperature of the core.
The miners were aware of how close they were to the power plant, which was still releasing radiation which could potentially shorten their lives.
What happened to the Chernobyl miners?
There were 400 miners brought in to dig underneath the power plant.
They were called on from Tula and Dobas specifically because the ground had a similar sandy consistency to Chernobyl.
The work was expected to take three months but they managed to complete their task in a mere six weeks.
Out of the miners who worked at Chernobyl, some have survived and some died.
WAS THERE MUCH AWARENESS ABOUT RADIATION DURING CHERNOBYL?
According to the Chernobyl podcast which accompanies the HBO and Sky Atlantic series, one in four miners perished from cancer or radiation-related diseases after working at Chernobyl.
Speaking on the podcast, Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin said: “So the miners were digging this tunnel but they were digging it under the impression that it was absolutely necessary.
“One of the weird things and one of the brutal things about science, particularly nuclear science, is that it’s based on probabilities and so at the end of this episode, Legasov says: ‘I’ve ordered these people to do this.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE CHERNOBYL DIVERS?
“‘I have effectively killed a large number of them and I’m doing it because there’s a chance we might need it.’ And in fact, they didn’t.”
Most of the miners who survived have now given up smoking and alcohol to help preserve their health.
Chernobyl miner Vladimir Naumov reflected on digging at the plant: “Who else but us? Me and my fellow workers were brought up that way. Not that we went there to die, we went there to save lives.”
He continued to Sky News: “To save our families first and our country, of course. And in the long run it turned out that Europe was affected, and that higher radiation was registered in the Sahara desert and even in South America.”
WHERE WERE THE PEOPLE FROM CHERNOBYL EVACUATED?
Fellow miner Andrey Nasonov said of the dig: “I’ll never forget the enthusiasm I saw there.
“Two minutes to load the cart, drive it 150m, unload it, and drive it back.
“I have never seen anything like that since. I doubt I ever will, it’s unlikely anyone will be able to do that again.”
Naumov went on to say: “Every time I am at a funeral and give a speech I say, ‘he was such a great man, he did such a heroic deed that few people have done! And he did not live his life in vain!’
“I too have not lived in vain. And once I’ve left this world, I will be remembered too.”
In the end, the core actually cooled and the refrigerator installed by the miners was not needed.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF RADIATION SICKNESS?
Did the Chernobyl miners really dig naked?
The jury seems to be out on this one with Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin insisting that this detail was accurate.
Mazin explained: “There were some varying accounts of how much clothing got taken off. But more than one said they took it all off for the exact reason we state in the show: it was brutally hot.
“I think we say temperatures of 50 degrees Celsius. It was like a real oven in there and they couldn’t use fans because it would start the dust.”
WHY DID THE CHERNOBYL POWER PLANT CONTINUE TO RUN?
He continued: “And in the old days, it was apparently somewhat customary for miners to work in the nude because of the heat involved.
“The truth is that it didn’t really expose them that much more because when you’re in radiation, your clothing is barely going to do anything.”
However, miners Nasonov and Naumov stated they didn’t work naked and were not threatened by soldiers with guns.
Chernobyl is available to watch on NOW TV now
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