Valery Legasov > Quotes > Quotable Quote. - His suicide made it impossible for them to be ignored. This is a lie. A man in a sweater and large horn-rimmed glasses sits in a kitchen listening to his own voice coming from a cassette player. The real Valery Legasov did not single-handedly avert the apocalypse. Chernobyl explosion. There was nothing sane about Chernobyl. Later came the steps to prevent melted radioactive material from reaching the water in the lower cooling system, so a tunnel was built to prevent radioactives from reaching groundwater. New approaches were not welcomed. Press J to jump to the feed. Valery Alexeyevich Legasov1936911988427 Join. The staff began to age. Legasov, with only a few anomalies. site, he became very tan and weak. It was not the first time that he attempted suicide. MOSCOW (AP) _ Valery A. Legasov, a physical chemist who led the commission the investigated the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, has died at the age of 51, the official Soviet news agency Tass announced. Unfortunately, apart from these striking moments, the series often veers between caricature and folly. After two years at the plant, he finally joined the Kurchatov Institute. He was praised for his openness in discussing the causes The Harvard historian Serhii Plokhys 2018 book on Chernobyl reconstructs the sequence of events and assigns blame. Your notice should include (a) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed; (b) the URL where the allegedly infringing Site Content is located; (c) your full name, postal address, telephone number, and email address; (d) a statement that you have a good faith belief that the use of the allegedly infringing material on our Sites is not authorized; (e) your physical or electronic signature; and (f) a statement that you are the copyright owner or an authorized agent of the copyright owner. Footage of Legasov's address does exist -- but perhaps not the whole address. Two years later, on the anniversary of the accident, he committed suicide. I know you'll try your best.". He was the only scientist working at the site, his daughter recalls. A lady is nothing very specific. In 2016, a bust and a commemorative plaque were installed on the wall of Valery Legasov's home in Tula.[39]. How the show differs from real life. Lead was included as a radiation absorber, as well as sand and clay, which it was hoped would prevent the release of particulates. I've been wanting to read it for a long time. This caused serious jealousy among his colleagues. The total amount of materials dumped on the reactor weighed about 5,000 tons, including about 40 tons of boron compounds, 2,400 tons of lead, 1,800 tons of sand and clay, and 600 tons of dolomite, as well as sodium phosphate and polymer liquids (Bu93). I have not seen a single group in the Soviet Union that raised and considered [the analysis of nuclear safety] with any degree of competence As for the RBMK reactor, you know, in reactor circles, it was considered a bad reactor. He wasn't threatened or bullied by the KGB, he wasn't thrown out of his office or anythin. [1] When the first government commission group returned to Moscow, Legasov was asked to stay by Scherbina but was replaced by his scientific rival Evgeny Velikhov in the formal hierarchy. He was appointed [1] To find fault with the reactor design would directly implicate senior members of the Soviet government. Liam Daniel/HBO. In the final episode, Legasov, testifying as a witness, tells a Soviet court that the disaster happened because the tips of the control rods were made of graphite, which sped up the reaction, when . "What is the cost of lies?" This question, posed by scientist Valery Legasov (Jared Harris) opens HBO's Chernobyl and is the central focus of this television event.The series (created/written by Craig Mazin, directed by Johan Renck) follows the efforts of Legasov, Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skrsgard), and Ulana Khomyuk (Emily Watson) to respond to the . Those tapes sound like rambling of a very depressed man suffering from PTSD, because that's exactly what they are. His report was noted for its great detail and relative openness in discussing the extent and consequences of the tragedy,[24] disclosed to Western media some defects in the RBMK reactor design such as the positive void coefficient, as well as problems with operator training. Add to that his unpopularity among the younger scientists due to his meteoric rise in Soviet science and his questionable handling of the situation after the accident, and Legasov found himself being pushed back from all quarters. If you want to include real quotes, this page might be interesting for you: https://legasovtapetranslation.blogspot.com/. Sooner or later that debt is paid". I've been trying to research further into Valery Legasov and his work after watching the HBO minisereies. Valery Legasov: 5 Fast Facts You Need to . "[5], Legasov researched hydrogen energy as a byproduct of nuclear energy, nuclear energy strategy, energy generation safety and synthesis of unusual compounds, which he regarded as a neglected niche within the institute's activities. There was such unpreparedness, such disorder, such fear. [1] Spending four months in and around Chernobyl,[23] he received a high dose of radiation. After recording five audio tapes containing information about Chernobyl, he goes outside to hide them away from the watchful eye of KGB agents. he was barely eating or sleeping. Sooner or later, that debt is paid. On May 5, he already showed signs of radiation sickness (nuclear tan and hair loss) and by May 15, cough and insomnia began to kick in. (She lied about it.) There are a lot of people throughout the series who appear to act out of fear of being shot. And as for what Dyatlov did do, the man does not deserve prison. Finally, the HBO series Chernobyl, the fifth and final episode of which aired Monday, tells a fictionalized version. [7], From 1984 to 1985, Legasov with other specialists had reviewed the state of chemistry research in the country and found it to be in a critical state. In August 1986, Valery Legasov presented the Chernobyl report at the meeting of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. Biografia. When the scientist hesitates to explain how a nuclear reactor works, he's . By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. But resignation is a depressing and untelegenic spectacle. Work was the man, almost the only meaning of his life. In Episode 2, for example, the Central Committee member Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skarsgrd) threatens to have Legasov shot if he doesnt tell him how a nuclear reactor works. Sooner or later, that debt is paid. [7], Excessive hierarchy has always been contraindicated for science, it stifles it. Pikalov (having driven around the exploded reactor with a high-range dosimeter): It's not three roentgen.It's 15,000. The fact of the matter is, if he didnt know how it worked, he would never have had a lab. It was him who insisted on the evacuation of the neighboring town of Pripyat and his decisions that helped to limit the impact of the catastrophe that threatened Europe. This plan was rejected on 26 April 1988, the day before his death. Only eight years after his suicide in 1996 did Legasov receive a posthumous honorary title of Hero of the Russian Federation for the "courage and heroism" shown in his investigation of the disaster, awarded by then-president Boris Yeltsin. [17] In 1983,[17] he became the first deputy director for scientific work of the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy. Father used to bring the documents home. A year earlier, in 1987, he took a lethal dose of . [28] He was very disappointed that he was the only member of his Chernobyl team that did not receive the award "hero of socialist labor". This is inaccurate: summary executions, or even delayed executions on orders of a single apparatchik, were not a feature of Soviet life after the nineteen-thirties. The 1986 Chernobyl crisis was undoubtedly one of the worst nuclear disasters of all time. [20][21] He had been involved in work on industrial safely with the GKNT (State Committee for Science and Technology), in which he had explored the risks involved in energy generation. [1], In August 1986, he presented the report of the Soviet delegation at the special meeting of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. Legasov also tried to stop the May Day Parade in Ukraine, Legasov was particularly concerned with complex systems reliant on a single operator without adequate safety systems. 1989. [22] The report ran to 388 pages and was presented by Legasov to the conference in a 5-hour presentation, which many in the audience found disturbing. [7] Legasov and Anatoly Alexandrov described the meltdown scenarios, and Legasov agreed with the plan to tunnel under the reactor to provide cooling. Legasov was . Even the house pets left in the exclusion zone after people are evacuated are shown through the eyes of men who are sent there to execute them. After his death, radiation was found on his belongings. This opening scene of HBOs Chernobyl mini-series sets the tone for the horrific story of the 1986 nuclear disaster and Valery Legasov, a prominent Soviet inorganic chemist, who played a key role in Chernobyls response team and subsequent investigation into its causes. (Legasov closes his eyes in dismay) Bryukhanov: Comrade Shcherbina. Valery was born in Tula, Soviet Union. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. When one looks at the chain of events, why someone acted in this way and another in that way and so on, it is impossible to point to a single culprit, an initiator of all the unpleasant events that led to the crime. Valery Legasov Quotes & Sayings. David Remnick speaks with Masha Gessen about the chance that Donald Trump colluded with Vladimir Putin, whether it matters, and surprising pockets of resistance in Russia. The problem is not just that Khomyuk is a fiction; its that the kind of expert knowledge she represents is a fiction. [7], Legasov married Margarita Mikhailovna and had two children, Inga Legasova and Aleksey Valeryevich. [25], I did not lie in Vienna but I did not tell the full truth. [7] Legasov received many telegrams from around the world containing advice ranging from benevolent to provocative. 86 years ago, on September 1, 1936 was born one of the most famous Soviet nuclear physicist in the world - Valery Legasov. evacuation. Written by Craig Mazin. He was appointed by the Soviet Government to investigate the Chernobyl disaster less than 24 hours after it occurred. Shasharin, said that "The personnel had no idea . I was reading some portions of it but it felt as if he was mainly speaking on what happened and his experiences. When I looked at this device, I was confused by, for example, an unusual and, in my opinion, insufficient construction of safety systems, that would work in extreme situations. Sooner or later, that debt is paid. "No one leaves. Father checked the numbers over and over again. [1] Legasov only spoke up to admit that scientists had failed in their duty[1] and that he had been warning about the safety problems of the RBMK reactor for years but nothing had been done. There was no suicide note but he left a series of recorded tapes detailing how disillusioned he had become of the . During the trial of three men who have been deemed responsible for the disaster, a member of the Central Committee overrules the judge, who then looks to the prosecutor for directionand the prosecutor gives that direction with a nod. Because an attempt by a non-professional to bring some kind of insight into their work could hardly be acceptable the scientific spirit and the scientific atmosphere in reactor engineering gradually began to submit to the engineering will, as it were, to the ministerial will All conceptual talks, all attempts at adopting a scientific, consistent approach towards this problem, they did not accept at all. of the show. So, even if he didnt necessarily speak about that, did he say any notable things in his tapes? And this part is tragic, confusing and incomprehensible. [27] His treatment may have been that his independence, his habit of violating the chain of command and his lack of deference to the scientific establishment had irked senior members of the scientific community. Because it is a chain that links to itself allowing operation of stations without an external localisation shelter. Born in 1936 in Tula (173 km south of Moscow), Valery chose his career path early on. The final episode of Chernobyl also contains a scene that encapsulates the Soviet system perfectly. Midnight in Chernobyl Key Figures. As expected, this story has become surrounded by many different rumors. MagicalQuote. (There are tiny errors, like a holiday uniform worn by schoolchildren on a non-holiday, or teen-agers carrying little kids school bags, but this is truly splitting hairs.) I swear we get this question once a week on this sub No, the cost of lies quote is fictional. The real-life story is a bit different. In effect, Plokhy argues, it was the Soviet system that created Chernobyl and made the explosion inevitable. Legasov himself was a beneficiary of that systemic corruption; although he was talented enough to deserve his position, his rise to his office was in no small part due to being the protg of one of the biggest names in Soviet Nuclear science. He was the real Soviet Union nuclear physicist who was in charge of investigating the disaster. cover up the causes of the disaster. [14] At some stage, Legasov experienced face injuries and minor scarring as a result of chemical experimentation. This is the great-men (and one woman) narrative of history, where its a few steps, a few decisions, made by a few men that matter, rather than the mess that humans make and from which they suffer. disaster as an inevitable apotheosis of the USSRs economic system. By the time of his death, Legasov had been exposed to 150 rem (1.5 Sv) of radiation, which was far above safe levels. officials denied the threat to the public. [7] Under his leadership, a scientific school was created in the newest section of inorganic chemistry chemistry of noble gases. Tagged: Chernobyl, Anatoly Dyatlov, Labor Camps, Prison. Up until Chernobyl, he was being groomed to be the de facto leader of the Soviet scientific community - a place full of politics and nepotism. We hardly see any of the evacuees at all, and we are given only one indication that some people resisted and refused to leave: an old woman who, at the beginning of Episode 4, obstinately continues milking her cow after she is repeatedly ordered to move. But he wasnt, he wasnt an ambitious man, his daughter believes.