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Life after Chernobyl

The explosion that struck 25 years ago this month at Chernobyl, the world’s worst nuclear accident, set in motion a major undertaking that today bears on the life of the entire country of Ukraine.

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Abandoned buildings in Pripyat, Ukraine. The town, founded in 1970 for workers at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant but evacuated after the 1986 explosion, has become a tourist destination for the curious.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Maria Krivolapova, 61, shown at her home in Obukhiv, Ukraine, loaded sand onto helicopters after the 1986 explosion at Reactor 4 in an effort contain the fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Her family was evacuated eight days later.

Maria Krivolapova, 61, shown at her home in Obukhiv, Ukraine, loaded sand onto helicopters after the 1986 explosion at Reactor 4 in an effort contain the fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Her family was evacuated eight days later.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Krivolapova makes a batch of fresh butter at her home in Obukhiv.

Krivolapova makes a batch of fresh butter at her home in Obukhiv.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Tamara Perebeiniz, 62, Maria Krivolapova, right, 61, and Galina Dubrova, 55, seated, were among those gathered at the Chernobyl Union of Ukraine, an advocacy group, to file lawsuits against the government in Kiev.

Tamara Perebeiniz, 62, Maria Krivolapova, right, 61, and Galina Dubrova, 55, seated, were among those gathered at the Chernobyl Union of Ukraine, an advocacy group, to file lawsuits against the government in Kiev.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

The exploded fourth reactor of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is seen in this aerial view from 1986.

The exploded fourth reactor of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is seen in this aerial view from 1986.

/ Reuters

A student sits quietly after watching a video on the Chernobyl disaster at the Chernobyl Museum in Kiev.

A student sits quietly after watching a video on the Chernobyl disaster at the Chernobyl Museum in Kiev.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Students file through an exhibit at the Chernobyl Museum in Kiev.

Students file through an exhibit at the Chernobyl Museum in Kiev.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Work at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant to contain the spread of radiation continues, with Reactor 4 in the background.

Work at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant to contain the spread of radiation continues, with Reactor 4 in the background.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Visitors wander through abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat, Ukraine. Occasional tours to the area are common.

Visitors wander through abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat, Ukraine. Occasional tours to the area are common.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat have become a tourist destination.

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat have become a tourist destination.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Abandoned buildings in Pripyat.

Abandoned buildings in Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

A cooling tower seen from an abandoned building sits unfinished since the 1986 explosion at the Chernobyl plant.

A cooling tower seen from an abandoned building sits unfinished since the 1986 explosion at the Chernobyl plant.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

A discarded mask sits in an abandoned classroom at a school in Pripyat.

A discarded mask sits in an abandoned classroom at a school in Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Discarded masks and other items sit in an abandoned classroom at a school in Pripyat.

Discarded masks and other items sit in an abandoned classroom at a school in Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Inside a former kindergarten in the town of Chernobyl.

Inside a former kindergarten in the town of Chernobyl.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat.

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Faded photographs remain on the gymnasium wall of a school in Pripyat.

Faded photographs remain on the gymnasium wall of a school in Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat.

Abandoned buildings in the town of Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Nature finds a way to flourish through the concrete stairs again 25 years after the Chernobyl explosion in the town of Pripyat.

Nature finds a way to flourish through the concrete stairs again 25 years after the Chernobyl explosion in the town of Pripyat.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

A memorial in Slavutych, Ukraine, remembers those killed from exposure to radiation.

A memorial in Slavutych, Ukraine, remembers those killed from exposure to radiation.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Radinka, outside Chernobyl, was one of the villages to which people were evacuated after the explosion at the nuclear plant.

Radinka, outside Chernobyl, was one of the villages to which people were evacuated after the explosion at the nuclear plant.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Olga Nikolaevna Brazhevsraia, 60, who lives in the village of Radinka, accommodated 26 people into her small home after they were evacuated following the explosion at the Chernobyl plant.

Olga Nikolaevna Brazhevsraia, 60, who lives in the village of Radinka, accommodated 26 people into her small home after they were evacuated following the explosion at the Chernobyl plant.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

Olga Nikolaevna Brazhevsraia says she used to think often of the people she accommodated in her Radinka home after the Chernobyl disaster.

Olga Nikolaevna Brazhevsraia says she used to think often of the people she accommodated in her Radinka home after the Chernobyl disaster.

Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post

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