Journey Through Time 70. Chernobyl: The Battle Against Nuclear Fallout (Ep 3)
Feb 2, 2026
A tense retelling of the immediate chaos after the reactor blast. Brave firefighters faced invisible radiation and tragic consequences. Leaders grappled with disbelief while risky helicopter drops tried to contain the core. Delayed evacuations and secret cloud-seeding over Belarus raise questions about tradeoffs and coverups. The world learned of the disaster only after fallout showed up abroad.
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Doomed First Responders
- Firefighters arrived without protective gear and fought what they thought were ordinary fires at 1:28 a.m. near reactors three and four. They tasted metal and unknowingly received fatal radiation doses from expelled graphite and fuel.
Belief In Reactor Infallibility
- Chernobyl's responders clung to training that assumed the reactor could not explode, producing denial and dangerous decisions. That collective belief delayed correct responses and worsened exposure risks.
Helicopter 'Bombing' Operation
- Helicopters dropped sand, clay, lead and boron onto the burning core in a desperate bombing-style campaign starting the next morning. Pilots and crews received high radiation doses and some helicopters later became radioactive waste.
