POLESSKY STATE RADIATION ECOLOGICAL RESERVE
TO MOZYR, MINSK, BELARUS
TO GOMEL, MINSK, BELARUS
TO KOROSTEN, ZHYTOMYR
TEN KILOMETER ZONE
PRIPYAT RIVER
THIRTY KILOMETER ZONE
0 MILES RUSSIA BELARUS Ovruch
PripyatChornobyl Chernihiv
UKRAINE RAILROADS THROUGH THE CHORNOBYL EXCLUSION ZONE THE OVRUCH TO CHERNIHIV RAIL LINK The first railroad in Ukrainian terri-
tory was constructed between 1866 and 1871, connecting the cities of Odessa and Balta for transporting grain. Additional lines were constructed at a fast pace in the 1870s, eventually connecting most large Ukrainian cities, and providing a rail link to Moscow, the center of impe- rial Russia. After World War I, construc- tion of railroads continued, connecting smaller cities and villages to the rest of the country, like the cities of Ovruch and Chernihiv. For a rather unimportant line, the
rail link between Ovruch and Cherni- hiv was fraught with problems from the get-go. Construction on the line began on February 20, 1927, using labor from the 17th Battalion of the military’s rail- way division, as well as locals that had horses, and even some forced labor. The final length of the line would be 177.6 kilometers (110.4 miles), 77 percent of which was in Ukraine, and 23 percent in Byelorussia (Belarus). Much of the land was sparsely populated and was made up of dense forests and swamps. There were roughly 35.5 people per square ki- lometer, and 35 to 65 percent of the land was deemed infertile for growing crops. Initial excavation was done the old-fashioned way. More than 500 hors- es were employed in the task, as well as men with simple spades and wheel- barrows. Many of the workers lived in cramped barracks with inadequate san- itation. Poor conditions including flood- ing and waist-deep swamps likely didn’t help either. Initially, men slept on straw mats and cooked their own food over fires. However, incentives like increased
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rations and better accommodations were offered to encourage quicker work and to meet construction deadlines. Track-laying commenced in stages, starting July 12 from Chernihiv west towards the Dneiper River, on July 15 from Ovruch east toward the Pripyat River, and on August 15 from Pripyat west toward Ovruch, meeting the pre- vious construction group in the middle. Locomotives and passenger cars were shipped by river to these work sites on the west bank of the Pripyat River, in- cluding 69 coaches and two locomotives for Chernihiv and 101 coaches and four locomotives for Yaniv. Track construction was completed by September 1927, but two integral parts were missing — the bridges over the Pri- pyat and the Dneiper rivers. The railroad operated in three individual segments until the new bridges connected them. Throughout the task, several bridge workers were stricken with compression sickness while working on the bridges’ caissons. On July 4, 1929, the nearly completed Pripyat River Bridge collapsed entirely during a significant storm. Until the bridges were complete, ferries were used to complete the journey, and special pontoons were available to float locomo- tives and wagons across the water. Mismanagement woes were preva-
lent throughout the entire job. In 1928 several bridge builders were brought up on charges for violating specifications. While cheap materials were used to cut costs, components like high-quality iron, were simply not available. Once the rail- road finally began operating, difficul- ties continued. In 1929 only half of the locomotives were in working order, and it often took three to six months to even start repair work. The line was, howev- er, completed by the very end of 1929. With the onset of World War II and invading Nazi soldiers pushing further
eastward, the retreating Soviets fol- lowed a “scorched earth” policy leaving behind nothing of value. This included the destruction of both the Pripyat and Dneiper River bridges in 1941. Liberat- ed in 1943, the bridges were reconstruct- ed only in the late 1950s, reflecting ei- ther the lack of importance of the line, or simply the fact that there were many other tasks of higher priority to be com- pleted first.
NEW POWER FOR AN ATOMIC AGE
Were it not for a chance event, the Ovruch to Chernihiv line could be operat- ing in obscurity to this day. In a country known for its fertile farmland, the land surrounding these rails was swampy, unfit for farming, and sparsely populat- ed. But for these very reasons it fit the bill for a nuclear power plant. RBMK (Reaktor Bolshoy Moshchnosty Kanalny or “High Power Channel-type Reactor”) reactors — like the ones built at Chor- nobyl — required immense amounts of water to operate properly. The best lo- cation for such a plant would be near a natural water source, and with open space to create a vast cooling pond. The ideal cooling pond would take up at least 20 square kilometers, which would be a significant investment of land in a terri- tory used for farming. But since the area was unfit for that use, and right near the natural waters of the Pripyat Riv- er, it became a top candidate among 12 others for Ukraine’s first nuclear plant. When the list was whittled down to two candidates, the other being Ladyzhin in Vinnitsa Oblast, it was the nearby rail- road, allowing easy transport of people and goods, along with the plentiful wa- ters of the Pripyat River, that sealed the deal. Construction of the Chornobyl plant, and the city Pripyat for the plant’s workers, began in 1970. The first reactor of the V.I. Lenin Nu-
Not all lines shown. Not an official map. Illustration by Emily Moser ©2015 White River Productions KILOMETRES 0 20 40 RESERVOIR KIEV 10 20 30
Regular Service, Chernihiv to Iolcha Employee Train, Slavutych to Semikhody Tracks not used for passenger service Tracks used by Chernobyl plant Open Station Closed Station
DNEIPER RIVER
TO NIZHYN, KYIV
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