Repairs to the roof of the Chernobyl sarcophagus have been completed one month ahead of schedule, AtomStroyExport announced today.
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| Working alongside the shelter |
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The structure was built in the weeks following the catastrophic experiment that destroyed Chernobyl 4 and has aged badly during the 22 years that have followed. The 'Object Shelter', as it is officially known, became less steady over the years - developing patches of corrosion and even some holes.
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The Stabilization consortium laid a new surface on top of corroded areas of the existing roof's 420 m2 area and installed a device to allow water to drain from the roof's northern side. This work took place at a height of 60 m and in difficult conditions of elevated radioactivity. A crane was used to lift materials to the听rooftop level, but workers had to carry components to their installation points.
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The work was officially accepted by Ukrainian authorities on 12 August, and ASE's Vitaly Dragunov received a certificate for consortium's exceptional contribution to safety during the work.
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The work on the roof comes as part of a larger project which has seen scaffolding-style supports erected alongside one wall of the shelter to take 80% of its weight. The stabilization as a whole is a precursor to the New Safe Confinement project, which will see a huge air-tight arch erected and manoeuvred over the main Chernobyl plant buildings. While the arch should last for at least 100 years, remote-controlled equipment will be used to dismantle and condition for disposal as much of the broken reactor as possible.
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Funds for all this work are managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and come from international donations.
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