Chernobyl Disaster
1986, a time we certainly remember concerned with the cold war. The same year, a catastrophic nuclear accident took place along the borders of one of the cold war adversaries on April 26. The Chernobyl accident may be a direct consequence of the cold war when a flawed Soviet nuclear reactor caused a steam explosion. As a result, direct emissions from the radioactive reactor core transmitted into the atmosphere.
What was more worrisome was how the disaster affected lives for a substantial period. Apart from plant workers dying on spot, a series of deaths took place for a few weeks due to acute radiation poisoning. Chernobyl was not similar to any other nuclear malfunction. It was perhaps the largest uncontrolled radioactive emission in the world causing severe socioeconomic disruption in Belarus, Ukraine and bordering regions of Russia.
Several organizations across the world reported after the accident, they were concerned about the safety regulations and operating policies in particular.
As of today, international organizations and nuclear power regulators are still in pursuit of what happened back in 1986.