Pechorsk Radius 15 Years Later: Gone, And Yet Forgotten?
Today marks the 15th anniversary of the destruction of Pechorsk â an Eastern Europian mining town that has become synonymous with tragedy, loss, and mystery. On this day fifteen years ago almost forty thousand people lost their lives in a horrible catastrophic event.Â
The nature of the Event remains unknown, and there is still no explanation as to how and why it happened. The families of those who perished received no explanation â they werenât even allowed to retrieve the bodies of their loved ones. Today there is an exclusion zone around Pechorsk, and no one is allowed to enter aside from the UNPSC specialists. But even they, as far as the public knows, donât dare to enter the Radius itself.
Fifteen years ago there was a worldwide effort to understand what happened to Pechorsk. For a while, it was the single most discussed topic in the media, scientific communities, and political establishments. However, as time passed with no answers to be found, our attention shifted to other, more pressing matters. The news cycle moved on. Today there is little mention of Pechorsk, with the exception of horror flick aficionados and conspiracy theorists. Everyone knows the name, but, just like with Chernobyl or Deepwater Horizon, there is no real awareness of what it really means.Â
The question remains, however. What happened to the people of Pechorsk? While we have no answer, it is important to continue asking.
A Brief Summary of What We Know
Pechorsk was a relatively small Eastern European town. During the Soviet period of its history, large deposits of kimberlite rock were discovered and the town became a staging area for a large scale mining operation and quickly grew. Soon it was housing tens of thousands of people, most of whom worked in and around its open-pit diamond mine â one of the largest in the world. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the mine continued to operate and was active up to the day of the Radius event.
Timeline of the Radius Event
9:55
Geological observation stations across Europe and Russia detect a spike in seismic activity. All communications in and out of Pechorsk cease.
10:43
Ruslan Kalinin, a truck driver on his way back to Pechorsk, is first to encounter the Radius â he reports seeing âA strange, heavy fog surrounding the town.â During the next hour, more cars and trucks pile up on the roads leading to the town. Some drivers turn back; others, including Ruslan Kalinin, continue through.
11:30
Aerial reconnaissance helicopters reach the Radius zone.
11:31
All communication with the reconnaissance helicopters cease. They never return.
12:30
Local militia troops arrive at the border of the Pechorsk Radius zone and begin to secure the perimeter. There are reports of a number of vehicle collisions due to heavy fog conditions and communications systems in the area have been rendered inoperable.
14:49
Russian VDV paratroopers unlawfully arrive, engaging in sporadic firefights with the local militia. They detain a number of witnesses, confiscating their cameras and destroying all film.
An evacuation order for Pechorsk and the surrounding area is issued and all roads are closed.
15:25
News of the Pechorsk Radius begins to spread to local and national media.
15:38
Tensions escalate as NATO satellite reconnaissance is leaked to the international press and an emergency session of the UN is convened.
Unknown
Several squads of soldiers are sent into the Pechorsk Radius.
15:47
After the Kremlin issues a statement implying that Pechorsk was struck by a nuclear device, the UN Security Council calls for international stock markets to be closed, sparking international panic over war breaking out.
16:00
NATO issues a statement denying any radioactive explosion around Pechorsk, calling the event â..possibly an asteroid strike or interplanetary object.â (This statement was later retracted.)
16:17
Ruslan Kalinin stumbles out of the Radius. He appears to be severely wounded and in shock. He is sent to the nearest hospital on a medical evacuation helicopter.
16:30
Ruslan Kalinin dies on the way to the hospital. The paramedics accompanying him report that his condition worsened the further away he got from the Radius.
17:00
The Kremlin and White House issue a rare joint statement calling for calm, stating that NATO and Russia do not consider the Pechorsk Radius event to be a provocation to war. They offer no theory about what happened other than calling it a ânon-nuclear eventâ.
Unknown
Three surviving soldiers return from the Radius in a state of physical and mental breakdown. Their deaths are slow and gruesome.
17:00
Locals interviewed about the Radius describe the event as a short earthquake, which caused a lot of dust to fill the sky, reducing visibility to almost nothing. After some of the dust settled, they stated seeing a huge dark reddish orb in the sky, with black ash floating around the area.
17:23
Two more soldiers return from the Radius. One dies in two to three hours, the other survives until the next day, but eventually commits suicide in the medical tent.
19:04
The last surviving soldier returns from the Radius. The time and details of his death are stricken from records.
19:35
A photograph purported to be smuggled out from the Pechorsk Radius zone is broadcast by the international media. This confirms earlier reports of an orb-like object seen by local witnesses.
20:00
The UN Security Council votes unanimously to put the entire region under UN peacekeeping protection, in addition to offering aid to the victims of Pechorsk and assisting with evacuations.
The order to restrict all access into the Radius to civilian and military personnel is signed. The first analysis of recordings brought back by the six soldiers is presented to the authorities.
22:18
Two looters caught fleeing the Pechorsk quarantine are apprehended. They succumb to their wounds soon after, but not before claiming to have found an object possessing miraculous powers. The object is never again mentioned in any official documents.
23:00
A final statement is issued by the UN, Russia and NATO, forbidding any further entry into Pechorsk, calling it perilous to human life. Stock markets were ordered to be gradually reopened and further study of the Pechorsk Radius zone would be undertaken by an international team of experts.
23:59
From that point forward, all unaccounted citizens of Pechorsk are officially presumed dead
During the months following the Pechorsk Radius event, international political powers struggled to come to an agreement on who, and how, to deal with the Pechorsk Radius. In the end, a special political body was formed â the United Nations Pechorsk Special Committee, which was entrusted with studying the Radius and dealing with the social fallout of the Event. The UNPSC spearheaded research as well as providing all necessary bureaucratic services, such as financial compensations to the families of the deceased, as well as compiling material for press coverage and answering questions of the public. They promised to operate with the principles of transparency, caution and utmost respect to the memory of those who perished.
Did UNPSC deliver on their promises?
We know very little, but itâs a resounding no.
Not only have they achieved zero success in trying to identify the reasons behind the Pechorsk Radius event, but over time the reports of their operations also became increasingly convoluted, to the point of being misleading and secretive.
Did we know more about the Radius than we did fifteen years ago?
No.
Do we pay as much attention to the Radius as a completely unexplained phenomenon that took the lives of forty thousand people deserves?
No.
And the last question I want to leave you with, the Reader, is thisâŚ
Why is that?
