A piece of crane machinery used to clean up after the Chernobyl disaster is remotely hidden in a neighbouring forest due to it being able to kill in a single touch.
On April 26, 1986, a reactor explosion took place at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant near the now-abandoned city of Pripyat, Ukraine.
38 years on, the accident remains the worst nuclear disaster in history and simultaneously holds the crown for being the costliest disaster in human history, too.
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It’s thought that around 30 people died from the immediate blast trauma and acute radiation syndrome (ARS) in the weeks after the explosion.
However, thousands since have died from radiation exposure, which causes multiple long-term illnesses and cancer.
In the wake of the catastrophe - which took place after steam explosions and a reactor meltdown caused a significant part of the plant to be destroyed - workers were initially unsure how to clean up the decimated area.
According to Sydney archaeologist Robert Maxwell, the Soviets elected to borrow a robot from West Germany and utilised a lunar rover too.
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A large piece of crane machinery was also used to clear up radioactive graphite and material that exploded onto rooftops alongside the reactor.
Following the operation, the claw of the machine was dumped deep in a remote part of the nearby forest by officials.
However, in 2019, Maxwell found ‘The Claw of Death’ on a private tour and elected to take radioactive readings.
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Speaking to news.au, the Australian said: "There are many things in the zone today for which contact for any prolonged period will definitely kill you, and the Claw is definitely the most dangerous of all because it’s not roped off or inaccessible like other hazards.
"It’s essentially just sitting in a forest clearing for the rest of time. It’s severely potentially lethal."
Upon discovering The Claw of Death, Maxwell - who is the only archaeologist in the world who has worked at Chernobyl during two field excursions - stuck his hand in to gain a Geiger reading.
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"When I had my encounter with the Claw — let’s just say it was screamingly radioactive," he told the news outlet.
"I put my hand inside it because I wanted to get a reading with the Geiger counter. Was I worried? Yes, but I was worried the whole time."
Despite putting his bare hand inside the claw, the expert claimed it ‘wasn’t easy’ to get a reading as the Geiger counter was climbing so fast.
"Every time I took a photo it was between digits, so I kept getting a blank screen," he explained. "Eventually I got some numbers, we yelled ‘Now!’ and I pulled my hand out."
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According to his screenshots, Maxwell found the microsieverts per hour (uSv/h) level was 39.80.
He further estimated that the claw currently releases ‘something in the region of 950uSv of radiation a day'.
The Claw may be a historic relic but the archaeologist claims that there is a ‘very good reason’ why it is kept in a secluded part of the nearby forest.
“As for tourists? I don’t recommend a visit," he added. "There are plenty of less dangerous things to see in Chernobyl."
While tourists can visit the Chernobyl area, The Claw sits outside of the 30km exclusion zone radius, meaning you won’t be able to see the potentially-fatal object.
Topics: Chernobyl, History, Science, World News, Cancer, Environment
Ella Scott