The Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster

THE CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR DISASTER -- (House of Representatives - April 04, 2006)

(Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, as the world prepares to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, I rise in support of House Resolution 703 recognizing the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and supporting continued efforts to control radiation and mitigate the adverse health consequences related to the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

The scope of the devastation that followed that explosion was truly unprecedented. More than 600,000 emergency workers, liquidators, risked their lives putting out the reactor's inferno that raged for 10 days while exposing themselves to extremely high and deadly doses of radiation. Hundreds of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes because of radioactive contamination. More than 5 million people in Ukraine, Belarus, and Western Russia found themselves coping with life in towns and villages contaminated by iodine and cesium.

In the RECORD I will place a full statement regarding this resolution as well as support from the Children of Chernobyl Relief Fund and the Chernobyl Children's Project International for the incredible work that they continue to do two decades later in dealing with the devastation that still lives.

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