Ukraine to open Chernobyl area to tourists in 2011

[Haole Girl]

Ukraine to open Chernobyl area to tourists in 2011

By MARIA DANILOVA, Associated Press Maria Danilova, Associated Press – 1 hr 13 mins ago

KIEV, Ukraine – Want a better understanding of the world's worst nuclear disaster? Come tour the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Beginning next year, Ukraine plans to open up the sealed zone around the Chernobyl reactor to visitors who wish to learn more about the tragedy that occurred nearly a quarter of a century ago, the Emergency Situations Ministry said Monday.

Chernobyl's reactor No. 4 exploded on April 26, 1986, spewing radiation over a large swath of northern Europe. Hundreds of thousands of people were resettled from areas contaminated with radiation fallout in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia. Related health problems still persist.

The so-called exclusion zone, a highly contaminated area within a 30-mile (48-kilometer) radius of the exploded reactor, was evacuated and sealed off in the aftermath of the explosion. All visits were prohibited.

Today, about 2,500 employees maintain the remains of the now-closed nuclear plant, working in shifts to minimize their exposure to radiation. Several hundred evacuees have returned to their villages in the area despite a government ban. A few firms now offer tours to the restricted area, but the government says those tours are illegal and their safety is not guaranteed.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101214/ap_on_sc/eu_ukraine_chernobyl_tourism

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:crazy:

[somone]

1. "if one follows the official route and doesn't stray away from the group"

and wear your Geiger counter

[Poll_Blind]

2. I hear the resort there received absolutely glowing reviews!

Oh come on! Somebody had to say it!

PB

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

4. That's so disgustingly wrong...

...it's beautiful! :thumbsup: :rofl:

[hlthe2b]

9. ( Five very glowing stars)

:crazy:

[Poll_Blind]

11. (And three thumbs up!)

:hide:

PB

[zehnkatzen]

14. Thank you! Will Be Here all week! Tip your server, and try the Chicken Kiev!

Yeah, it's a joke in bad taste, but trust me, I'm crying on the inside here.

[Codeine]

3. I'd go in a second.

There's an eerie beauty in the decay of abandoned towns.

[bullwinkle428]

6. Visit the Love Canal area by Niagara Falls, NY - that place

is creepy enough, in terms of decaying abandoned neighborhoods.

[bullwinkle428]

5. This will surely go to the top of my list when it comes to international travel!

:eyes:

[Haole Girl]

13. lol!

My thoughts exactly! :hi:

[hlthe2b]

7. National Geographic has an online interactive multimedia "tour"

(and there are other online slideshows and videos)... I think I'll stick with that. It is pretty horrifying.

Here's the NG feature: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2006/04/inside-chernobyl/audio-interactive

[msongs]

17. thanks for the link n the slideshow tour was good nt

[AlabamaLibrul]

8. Frankly, I'd go just for the photos.

Everybody dies.

[NuclearDem]

10. I left my heart in Pripyat

But I came back with an extra leg.

[Lucian]

12. That's what I want to do for vacation...

go to a place full of nuclear fallout. Forget Paris. Forget Rome. I want to go to Chernobyl.

:sarcasm:

[Bobbieo]

15. Keep your money in the US and visit Navajoland and its radioactive waste.

[Initech]

16. "Thank you Homer, you turned a potential Chernobyl into a mere Three Mile Island:."

[Canuckistanian]

18. Come visit the enchanted world of Pripyat!

Take a walk through our riverside trails


Marvel at the award-winning architecture:


Take in the local Beauty Pageant!


Call your Travel Agent. Or just curl up in a fetal position under your front porch.

[Johnny Harpo]

19. Night Time Tours Will Not Require Flashlights

n/t