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Journalism of Courage
MOSCOW, June 30: Decontamination work is finally over at the Federal Nuclear Centre in Sarov, formerly the secret Soviet city of Arzamas-168242;, scene of a massive radiation leak on June 17 that killed researcher Alexander Zakharov.Details about the incident are only slowly coming to light.
Arzamas-16, as it was once known, was one of a number of ultra-secret cities built by the former Soviet regime for corral scientists working on highly advanced nuclear weapons systems. Secret weapons development continues there.Zakharov died at work in a special bunker at site No. 8, which according to local experts, is normally closed to all except a small number of persons dealing with the so-called special devices8217;. For his experiment, which involved some kind of weapons test, Zakharov initiated a controlled nuclear chain reaction using small amounts of uranium.
The Ministry of Nuclear Energy Minatom says that there was a serious breach of safety regulations. As a result, Zakharov, who was not wearing full protective gear, lost control of the reaction and was bombarded with neutrons.
He managed to get out of the underground laboratory and report the incident before losing consciousness. The bunker was sealed of and nearby installations were evacuated.
Zakharov, aged 42, was exposed to radiation of over 600 Roentgen Equivalent Man REM. The maximum permitted annual exposure for nuclear workers is 5 REM. First treated in Sarov8217;s Hospital, he was flown to Moscow8217;s clinic number six, one of the main centres for treating Chernobyl victims. He died three days later.
Nuclear Energy Minister Viktor Mikhailov said Zakharov 8220;did not have permission8221; to carry out the experiment.
His notes have not been found, but Mikhailov said the tragedy was caused by a 8220;mistake in calculations made by the researcher8221;, who apparently admitted his error after the accident.
As a professional, Zakharov 8220;knew very well that he was doomed after irradiation8221;, Mikhailov said.
Shortly before his death he said 8220;slippery8221; gloves were at least partly to blame, according to a source in the commission set up to investigate the incident. He was buried in Sarov last Tuesday.
Because of its military role, the installations at Sarov are not subject to inspection by the State Nuclear Inspect Orate, Gosatomnadzor GAN. Safety and security remain the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence and, after the latest accident, pressure is likely to increase for GAN to extend its authority to such facilities.
It was over a week before any clean-up operations could begin at the accident site. The contaminated laboratory was left to 8220;cool off8221;, Mikhailov said.
Minatom official Vitali Nosonov said the work was hampered by the dangers of sending metal objects into the room which might trigger a small nuclear reaction.
The active critical assembly was dismantled using a special Russian-made remote controlled suction device sent to Arazamas-16 by Russia8217;s Minister for Emergency Situations, Sergei Shoigu. So powerful were the radiation levels, measuring over 1,000 Roentgen, the circuits of other machines tried by the clean up teams were burnt out.
Centre Director Radiy Ilkayev said all radiation was contained within the bunker8217;s 3-metre thick concrete dome.
Ilkayev says he plans to close down all the reactors at the centre and to re-start them later with tightened safety rules.
Sarov, 140 km south of Nizhny Novgorod, is one of two such former secret cities still largely closed to foreigners, and is where the erstwhile Soviet Union8217;s nuclear weapons were developed.
