The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 released large quantities of radioactive material from the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant into the surrounding environment. The area in a radius surrounding the exploded reactor was evacuated and sealed off by Soviet authorities. This area was formalised as the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone; its boundaries have changed over time. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, this area became part of newly independent Ukraine and was managed by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
