Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
Fears of renewed radioactive danger have emerged at the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster after inspectors confirmed serious damage to the massive protective structure encasing Chernobyl’s destroyed Reactor 4. The breach, caused by a Russian drone strike earlier this year, has raised alarms that the shelter may no longer be fully capable of containing the radioactive remains of the 1986 catastrophe.
The structure, officially known as the New Safe Confinement (NSC), is a vast steel dome built at a cost of more than $2 billion and slid into place in 2016 to seal off the crumbling Soviet-era sarcophagus that once hastily covered the reactor. Designed to last at least a century, the NSC was intended to prevent the release of radioactive dust and particles while allowing engineers to eventually dismantle the reactor remains safely.
This month, the United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that the dome suffered severe damage during a drone strike in February. Following a detailed safety assessment, IAEA experts concluded that the NSC has lost some of its primary safety functions, including its ability to fully confine radioactive material.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said that while limited temporary repairs have been made to the roof, they are not sufficient. He warned that “timely and comprehensive restoration remains essential to prevent further degradation and ensure long-term nuclear safety.” Inspectors did note that the dome’s main structural framework and monitoring systems remain intact, offering some reassurance that an immediate radiological release is unlikely.
Nevertheless, the stakes are high. Beneath the damaged shelter lies a vast quantity of radioactive debris from the explosion of Reactor 4, which on April 26, 1986, sent enormous amounts of radioactive material across Ukraine, Europe and beyond. The disaster is estimated to have killed between 30 and 50 people in the months following the explosion due to blast injuries and acute radiation sickness. Long-term deaths linked to radiation exposure remain contested: a UN-backed Chernobyl Forum estimated up to 4,000 eventual fatalities among the most heavily exposed populations, while other organizations have suggested far higher numbers.
The IAEA has urged urgent repairs and technological upgrades to the NSC, including improved humidity control, enhanced corrosion monitoring and advanced automated systems to stabilize the reactor remains. The damage to the dome is part of a broader pattern of risk to nuclear infrastructure caused by the ongoing war, with substations and power supplies increasingly affected since last year.
“These substations are essential for nuclear safety and security,” Grossi said. “They are absolutely indispensable for providing the electricity all nuclear power plants need for reactor cooling and other safety systems.”
Plans are already in motion to stabilize the situation. With support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Chornobyl site is scheduled to undergo additional temporary repairs in 2026 aimed at restoring the NSC’s confinement function. Full restoration, however, is expected to depend on the end of the conflict. The IAEA, which maintains a permanent presence at the site, says it will continue to support efforts to ensure nuclear safety and security.
Nearly four decades after the disaster, Chernobyl remains a place of stark contrasts. The surrounding Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, from which humans were evacuated in the aftermath of the explosion, has become an unintended wildlife refuge. In the absence of people, animals have proliferated despite radiation levels that remain well above what is considered safe for human exposure.
Among the most striking examples are the stray dogs that roam the exclusion zone. A scientific study published in 2023 found that these animals appear to have undergone genetic changes that may help them survive chronic exposure to radiation, heavy metals and pollution. Researchers analyzed blood samples from 116 semi-feral dogs living near the reactor site and in nearby Chernobyl city, identifying distinct genetic populations unlike those of dogs elsewhere in the region.
The study uncovered hundreds of unusual genomic markers and dozens of genes potentially linked to environmental contamination. While scientists caution that the findings do not mean the dogs are “immune” to radiation in a simple sense, they suggest long-term adaptation to one of the most toxic environments on Earth.
For nuclear experts, however, the resilience of wildlife does little to offset concern about the damaged shield. The NSC was meant to be the final barrier between the radioactive past and the outside world. Its impairment, even if partial, underscores how the legacy of Chernobyl continues to intersect with present-day conflict, turning a site once stabilized at enormous cost into a renewed focus of global anxiety.
