Martin Brown wrote:


The authorities chose to move people away because they were unsure what
would happen next

And that is the true reason. The reactors were in an unknown state.
Those charged with civilian safety were not nuclear experts. They could
not be expected at that time to understand the implications of what was
happening. Part of this review of the accident is precisely to make sure
that people ARE aware of the implications in future.

And in this case, the evidence was clear. The mass evacuations with 20
20 hindsight did more harm than good.



and whether a major containment breach with massive
releases of radiation was in progress. They were in a no win situation.

Oddly enough they were in a major containment breach. As these things
are judged.

BUT what emerges is that a major containment breach is not actually that
life threatening.

Less than 100 people died of radiation or have died of radiation from
Chernobyl.

And if they had got iodine pills to the populations there, the several
thousand survivable but avoidable thyroid cancers would not have
happened either.

apart from hots spots of actual fuel rods - which don't travel far - the
greatest danger is iodine, followed by caesium.

In the case of elderly people whose life expectancy is not huge anyway,
caesium is almost a non issue.


--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc-ra-cy) €“ a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are
rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.