Greece’s Atomic Energy Commission (EEAE) on Thursday assured the public that the country’s radiation levels are normal.
The announcement came following public concerns of potential radiation by the forest fires near the now defunct Chernobyl nuclear power plant between April 4 and 14.
According to news reports, more than 300 firefighters were called to contain the fires near the nuclear plant and nuclear waste disposal site.
The EEAE said that according to information provided by Ukrainian authorities, "radiation measurements conducted there from 4 to 7 April 2020, including the city of Kiev, indicate no significant dispersion of radioactivity over long distances,” and added that other regulatory authorities in Europe also confirm no change in radiation levels in Greece.
The commission noted that in the midst of the pandemic, the operational capability required to conduct the ongoing environmental radioactivity monitoring in Greece remains unaffected.
The Chernobyl nuclear power station has been abandoned since 1986, when the plant’s No. 4 reactor blew up with the explosion sending a cloud of radioactive fallout across much of Europe.
