Walking through the power plant was a disconcerting emotional experience. Despite no longer producing power it is still a central hub in Ukraine’s electrical grid.
The site of the world’s worst nuclear accident is a job site where plant workers clock in, clock out, eat lunch at the cafeteria, and earn a day’s wage. It is at once a factory, a museum, a switchboard, a massive industrial waste site, and a memorial.
The Reactor 3 Control Room (directly below) is a mirror of Reactor 4’s. During my tour I was allowed a few minutes alone within. I took that time sit in and meditate, listening to the stillness. Being there was like touching a wound in the side of the world.
I heard screaming and silence.
