Chernobyl survivor's message for Japan: Run

My first reaction was "but there's no way Fukushima even gets close to Chernobyl", but then I realized I sound like a nuclear apologist. So I looked up the most recent news about the plant.<p>The evacuation zone only covers 20km - and the IAEA just recorded levels of 161 uSv/h in a town that far away. That's 1410 mSv/y, compared to 2.4 mSv/y normal from background radiation. These are levels high enough to cause health effects, and one has to wonder why the government has not extended the evacuation radius if there's proof that health-affecting levels of radiation has gotten that far into the general environment. It seems like the US NRC's recommendations are wiser than the Japanese government's. That's a disturbing thought.<p>I really wonder how history will look back upon this - a well-executed response to a unforeseen disaster in the most difficult of circumstances, or an example of governmental coverup exposing civilians to unnecessary danger?

Being a victim does not make you an expert.[1]<p>It gives you a different perspective, an emotional perspective. There are surely lessons and warnings to be learned through such anecdotes and experiences. But the heightened emotions accompanying a victim's portrayal of an event should give them no more credentials than any other informed, researched perspective.<p>All that said, I have severe sympathy for Natalia and all the other victims and sufferers of Chernobyl and Fukushima.<p>[1] Being victimized can motivate one to <i>become</i> an expert on a topic by way of thorough research after the fact.

I have been watching documentaries recently of the Chernobyl cleanup - it is stunning. The bravery of the soldiers(or ignorance) is amazing.<p>The fact that they were called "Liquidators" and "BioRobots" is very interesting.<p>It is also interesting that they say they evacuated 100K residents then used <i>800K</i> liquidators is crazy.<p>If you haven't seen footage of the accident - check it out. When they first drilled into the reactor, they were stunned to find that it was empty. The rods had melted entirely and poured through the bottom of the reactor and fused with sand to make a massive graphite-fuel-rod-glass blob that was extremely radioactive.<p>They got close enough to it to film it.