KYIV, Nov. 30 (AP) – Workers at the Chernobyl atomic plant found a highly radioactive nuclear fuel fragment atop the sarcophagus that covers a reactor ruined in the world’s worst nuclear accident, officials said Thursday.
The 20-centimeter (8-inch) fragment, found last week during a scheduled sarcophagus examination, emits radiation of some 200 Roentgen in hour at a distance of 10 centimeters (4 inches), dropping to about 1 Roentgen in hour at a distance of 1 meter (3.3 feet).
The fuel piece could have appeared on the roof through a ventilation shaft located between the ruined reactor No. 4 and Chernobyl’s only working reactor, No. 3, said Svetlana Linkevych, a spokeswoman for sarcophagus workers.
Experts are now determining how the fuel reached the sarcophagus roof and the ways to remove it safely. A person may receive 100 permissible radiation doses if he holds the fragment for one hour, Linkevych said.
The sarcophagus was hastily constructed to cover the reactor that exploded and caught fire in April, 26, 1986, spewing a radioactive cloud over parts of Europe.
With the help of foreign aid, Ukraine is trying to make the leaky structure environmentally safe. It is believed to contain tons of radioactive fuel and dust.
Some 180 tons (198 short tons) of nuclear fuel were located in the reactor at the moment of its explosion, and scientists have accounted for only 140 tons (154 short tons) of it.
Ukraine has promised to close down the plant on Dec. 15 following pressure from Western nations, domestic and foreign environmental groups and ordinary Ukrainians concerned about the site’s safety.
