The largest nuclear disaster ever caused by humans occurred
in 1986 in Chernobyl, Ukraine. Just after 1 a.m. on April
26, one of several reactors exploded, launching a plume of
fire and nuclear fallout into the atmosphere, killing 50
people and affecting thousands more with cancers that would
kill years later. At Chernobyl -- and with all nuclear
disasters -- the real damage comes after the explosion.
Radiation spreads far distances and infiltrates air, food
sources and groundwater supplies, affecting local
populations for decades.