--- title: "A Fire at Chernobyl Is Releasing Large Amounts of Radiation" description: "Ukrainian authorities say a forest fire is causing radiation levels to spike in the area of Chernobyl, a nuclear power plant that melted down in 1986." date: "2020-04-06" modified: "2020-04-06" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/fire-chernobyl-releasing-radiation" categories: - "Energy" - "Science & Energy" tags: - "chernobyl" - "energy" - "nuclear" - "the digest" --- # A Fire at Chernobyl Is Releasing Large Amounts of Radiation ![Ukrainian authorities say a forest fire is causing radiation levels to spike in the area of Chernobyl, a nuclear power plant that melted down in 1986.]() *\Image: Pixabay/Victor Tangermann \* ## Dead Zone Ukrainian authorities [say a forest fire]() is causing radiation levels to spike in the area of Chernobyl, a nuclear power plant that melted down in 1986. "There is bad news — in the center of the fire, radiation is above normal," wrote Egor Firsov, the head of Ukraine's ecological inspection service, in a [Facebook post](). "As you can see in the video, the readings of the \[Geiger counter\] are 2.3, when the norm is 0.14. But this is only within the area of the fire outbreak." ## Disasterscape Since Chernobyl's deadly 1986 meltdown, the area around the plant has remained uninhabited — allowing nature to [take over the abandoned town](). But now the blaze is reigniting the specter of the decades-old disaster site. Residents of the Ukranian capital of Kiev are [even concerned]() about breathing in the radiation, according to *The Guardian*, which is about 60 miles south of Chernobyl, though Firsov said there was not yet cause for alarm. ## Fun Time Authorities say that a 27-year-old man has admitted that he set the fires "for fun," according to *The Guardian*. It's unclear whether the radiation levels will continue to spike or die down as firefighters continue their work in the area, but Firsov said that as of Sunday, radiation levels at the site were about sixteen times the norm. **READ MORE:** [Chernobyl radiation levels spike as forest fires rage]() \[*CNN*\] **More on Jupiter:** [*Daring Tourists Can Now Visit Chernobyl’s Control Room*]() ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()