www.ukrweekly.com Published by the Ukrainian Wationai Association Inc., a fraternal non-profit association! crainian Weekly Vol. LIV No. 18 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, MAY 4,1986 25 cents NUCLEAR DISASTER IN UKRAINE Up to 15,000 feared dead s7- Leningrad JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Up to Prypiat. This woman, too, had said that 15,000 are feared dead in what many the dead were buried at a radioactive Western experts are calling the worst waste site, reportedly in either the village nuclear accident in history. The acci- of Pyrohivtsi or Pirohove, southwest of dent occurred at the Chornobyl nuclear the accident site. power plant, located near the town of Residents of three other settlements Prypiat. some 60 miles north of Kiev, near the power plant were also eva- capital ot П'ќѓате. Reports of the cuated. accident were first released on Monday, Meanwhile, from Lviv. western U- April 28 krame, another relative learned the The figure ol 15,000 is based on tr people ѓт`е not been told the extent oi unconfirmed 'ep,ms om Ukraine. The іѓќ aucicai accident, although they do report ѓто ьі itr thai the dead ЛЄЇЄ know that one has occurred. Soviet bunco гл a nucieas waste disposal ^ite juthonties have not told the residents of (A n j.nbot ОЇ the intelligence soni- Lviv about any safety precautions thai munrv W'IO :s faivi'ij: u,iU іиљ hpc о uic^ -ЛКАКІІ s3e taking, such as nor eating Р```-`` 'Osta'^U'v .; ч,і'і м з. ll.s rV—- ol LVJOO deaths ^ cunteivaoiej staging iiidowrjs, taking юаіпе labieb. This and other information was This is in marked contrast to the transmitted to Svoboda and The Ukrai- situation in Poland, where children and nian Weekly by Ukrainian Americans pregnant women were given iodine in in the Northeast and Midwest who liquid or tablet form, and told not to have relatives in Ukraine whom they drink milk from grass-fed cows, or eat managed to contact via telephone. The fresh produce. relatives spoke on condition that their The BBC reported that an area names not be used. approximately 18 miles around the Reports from residents of Kiev indi- Chornobyl plant has been proclaimed a cate that there are some 10,000to 15,000 security zone. Western news media were casualties. Thousands of bandaged and barred from Kiev and the area near the bloody persons have been brought to nuclear plant. the city's hospitals, and the hospitals are As of Thursday, May 1, the West was packed with the wounded. reporting that the newest of four 1,000- The New York Times 7April 30, 1986 Earlier reports carried by United megawatt reactors at Chornobyl had Press International said that a resident experienced a meltdown and a second of Kiev revealed deaths had surpassed reactor was threatened, and that a Ramifications of Chornobyl catastrophe the 2,000 mark, and that 10,000 to graphite fire was continuing to spew JERSEY CITY, N.J. —"Thenuclear 15,000 persons were evacuated from (Continued on page 15) and of their ability to understand events disaster at Chornobol has major impli- of one kind or another on their own." cations and undermines the credibility Prof. Bociurkiw expects the relations of the Gorbachev regime." between Moscow and its neighbors will That's how a noted expert on the sour because-of its early silence about A look at nuclear power in Ukraine Soviet Union assessed the political the accident. He added that the authori- The Chornobyl nuclear power especially over the past two years, in fallout from the accident at the Soviet ties in Poland likely received much plant is located near the town of which time nuclear power plants nuclear power plant in Ukraine. more information about the effects of Prypiat, a town of 25,000 to 30,000 have come to account for some 60 Prof. Bohdan Bociurkiw, a 1984-85 the nuclear disaster than officials in residents that grew with the energy percent of the republic's total electri- fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Interna- Ukraine. facility. city-generating capacity. tional Center for Scholars and a pro- The' handling of the Chornobyl acci- According to Dr. David Marples, "The Ukrainian SSR, moreover, is fessor of political science at Carleton For stones on community an expert on Soviet industry and expected to play a key role in Soviet University in Ottawa, said the credibi- energy who is now a research asso- plans to increase the contribution of lity of the Gorbachev regime — both reaction to the disaster, see ciate at the Canadian Institute of nuclear energy to the USSR's pro- domestically and internationally — has page 2. Ukrainian Studies at the University duction from 9 percent to over 21 been dealt a serious blow by last week's of Alberta in Edmonton, the plant percent by 1990." disaster. dent, Dr. Bociurkiw said, brings to became operational in 1979. Its In that same article, Dr. Marples Dr. Bociurkiw, during a telephone mind the vague Soviet coverage of the proposed capacity is 5,000 mega- pointed out that, given the rapidity of interview with The Ukrainian Weekly 1965 earthquake disaster in the Uzbek watts. Its present capacity is 4,000 expansion of the nuclear industry, on May 1, pointed out that the extra- capital of Tashkent, when TASS ad- megawatts provided by four nuclear the question of safety needs to be ordinary Soviet effort to restrict in- mitted to only four fatalities. In the days reactors. The fifth and last reactor raised. There is also the fact that the formation about the nuclear accident following the Tashkent disaster, the was to have gone on line in March of nuclear power plants are located in flies in the face of promises of openness Soviet people were shocked to discover this year, but due to delays, this did close proximity to major cities in made by General Secretary Mikhail that the number of people killed by the not happen. Ukraine. "This, is not, however, a Gorbachev during the 27th Soviet Party earthquake were much higher: more In a January 1986 article published matter to which the authorities are Congress. than 8,000 people actually died in that in The Ukrainian Weekly, Dr. Mar- prepared to devote much public Mr. Gorbachev, in his keynote speech disaster. pies wrote: discussion," he wroie. at the congress, said: "This, aiongwith the misleading "The Ukrainian nuclear industry Dr. Marples quoted a former "Extensive, timely and frank infor- Soviet coverage of the South Korean ma.tion is evidence of trust in the people, has grown rapidly since 1981, and (Continued on page 15) airline incident exposes the Soviet respect for their intelligence and feelings (Continued on page 16) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, MAY 4, 1986 No. 18 NUCLEAR DISASTER IN UKRAINE Reactions to nuclear disaster U.S. Ukrainians pray for kin UNA telegram to President Ronald Reagan (April 29). by Marta Kolomayets and Michael B. crews followed them to record the Dear Mr. President: Bociurkiw in New York, and other service and get Ukrainian American In the name of our 78,000 members and in the name of the Ukrainian correspondents nationwide community reaction to this tragedy. American community, we implore you to use every means at your disposal to During his sermon, the Rev. Patrick determine the extent of the nuclear catastrophe occurring at Chornobyl, near NEW YORK — More than 700 Paschak, pastor of St. George `з, said Kiev, the capital of Ukraine,and offer every possible aid to the population Ukrainians gathered here at St. George that the catastrophe comes at a time afflicted by the disaster. Ukrainian Catholic Church to pray for when Ukrainians traditionally prepare The Ukrainian National Association stands ready to extend a helping hand their brothers and sisters in Ukraine, for Easter, the celebration of Christ's within our means to our suffering brethren. We await your call. victims of the nuclear disaster at the resurrection. In the name of humanitarianism let us not be found wanting in extending Chornobyl power plant. He added that there was no way to succor to the suffering victims of this calamity. Both Ukrainian Catholic and actually know what happened at Orthodox clergy served the 45-minute Chornobyl or how many people fell Executive Committee memorial moleben here on Wednesday, victim to this nuclear disaster, but that Ukrainian National Association April 30. Community leaders, youth prayers are needed at this time. organization members in their uniforms The service ended with the people and concerned Ukrainians wearing singing the hymn "Bozhe Velyky." UNA telegram to Vice-President George Bush (April 29). black armbands and holding lighted The Rev. Paschak, at a press conference following the prayer service, candles filed into the church for the 7 Dear Mr. Bush: p.m. service. told reporters many of his parishioners Television, radio and newspaper (Continued on page 15) Our entire membership of 78,000 joins the Ukrainian American community in urging you to use every possible means at your disposal to determine fully the reasons for, the extent of, and the ramifications that can be expected from the nuclear calamity occurring at Chornobyl near Kiev, capital of Ukraine. The Ukrainian National Association can be depended upon to do its part to alleviate within its means the suffering of the population brought about by this great catastrophe. As in the past, we are certain that America will come to the aid of suffering humanity and provide every comfort in their hour of dire need to the residents of Chornobyl and environs. Kindly inform us of the part that the Ukrainian National Association can play in rendering aid to our brethren.