The park of attractions/amusement park was scheduled to open on May 1, 1986, but never did. As I wandered amongst the decaying rides, all I could only think about was how much the city's children must have anticipated playing in this park, only to have those dreams dashed by an invisible monster.

Near the bumper cars, we recorded radiation levels of 340 µR/h, and one step to the left the levels were 1,200 µR/h. This was a good example of the extreme variability of radiation in the city and the entire Zone.

The city police station stands on Lesya Ukrainka Street near the western edge of town. The city did have some crime and many people were arrested for drunkenness. The jail cells were small and extremely dirty. I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to be a prisoner here, even prior to the accident when it was clean.

Swimming Pool "Azure" : Pripyat

Hospital Entrance : Pripyat

The city also had an indoor public swimming pool "Azure". These facilities were used for exercise and occasional swimming races for adults and children.

The city hospital was a strange place to visit. In the hours following the explosions at the plant, some of the injured plant workers and firemen were brought here. Though not confirmed, it is believed that one of those brave men passed away in this building while the others were transferred to specialty clinics in Kyiv and Moscow.

Hospital Interior : Pripyat

As with the other buildings we visited in the city, not much remains here except for some scattered, broken furniture and equipment. One room had a huge pile of dirty clothing piled on the floor. Some people have reported feeling as though they were being watched while here, but I did not sense that.

Apartment Building : Pripyat

Pripyat & Chernobyl Plant from roof

For a panoramic view of the city, we climbed stairs to the roof of the 16-story apartment building, No. 52 Lesya Ukrainka Street at the north end of town. No other place in the city provided me with a sense of the immensity of the disaster. From the roof, you can appreciate the physically small size of the city with buildings packed densely along the streets. Almost 50,000 people lived here and had their lives changed forever due to the events at the nuclear plant that hovers in the distance over the city, seemingly just a stone's throw away.

These words from former Pripyat resident Lyubov Sirota say much about the city and its former residents:

At night, of course, our town
though emptied forever, comes to life.
There, our dreams wander like clouds,
illuminate windows with moonlight.
--"To Pripyat" - Lyubov Sirota
(trans: Elisavietta Ritchie and Leonid Levin)

Prev 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 Next