Footage from the Chernobyl drone is going viral after filmmaker Danny Cooke captured the remains of the haunted landscape in a way most people haven't seen yet. Cooke made the Chernobyl drone video while working with CBS News and he was able to capture footage for a 60-minutes segment.
The Chernobyl drone video that resulted from the collaboration was released less than a week ago. It was called "Postcards from Pripyat, Chernobyl," and it is every bit as haunting as one would imagine it to be. The footage from the Chernobyl drone was reportedly captured via a Geiger counter, a DJI Phantom 2 quadcopter, a Canon 7D camera and a GoPro3+.
Featuring a frozen Ferris wheel, poisoned forests and paint peeling off of an empty swimming pool, it was hard to imagine that such an uninhabited place had once been a city brimming with life.
The Chernobyl drone video captured Pripyat in Ukraine, which was once home to a population of 50,000, in its state 30 years later after it was devastated by a nuclear disaster.
The accident happened during a systems test from the Chernobyl power plant on April 26, 1986. The mishap soon created a huge explosion and fire, releasing large amounts of radioactive particles into the atmosphere. Not only was the area where the plant is located affected, but radiation also spread over western USSR and Europe, according to the Daily Mail.
Apparently, Soviet officials did not report the disaster soon after it occurred, with the accident kept from the people for several days. Event plant workers from the town of Pripyat wasn't made aware of the disaster as the plant's No. 4 reactor blew up around 1:30 a.m.
The official acknowledgement reportedly came only three days after. The government evacuated 350,000 residents from Chernobyl and Pripyat, and what came almost three decades later was captured by the Chernobyl drone.
Scientists have been divided as to how many died from the explosion. It released about 400 times more radiation than the U.S. atomic bomb that was dropped over Hiroshima.
While it was shown in the video by the Chernobyl drone that the town was completely empty, a few residents actually refused to leave the place. Tens of thousands evacuated the area however, and now only a handful of older residents have moved back in to stay close to their family graves.
The footage from the Chernobyl drone shows Pripyat also being taken over by nature. Rusted bumper cars and scattered papers are located alongside golden flowers. There are also scenes with trees growing among buildings.
There have been many images of Pripyat since the disaster, and this Chernobyl drone video isn't the first to show the area after the accident. However, this footage is the first drone's-eye view of the abandoned remains of the radiation-infested town.
"Chernobyl is one of the most interesting and dangerous places I've been," Cooke wrote as part of the description in the Chernobyl drone video. "I can't imagine how terrifying it would have been for the hundreds of thousands of locals who evacuated."
The Chernobyl drone video was a doubly strange experience for Cooke since the place reportedly had had such an impact on his family in Italy when he was still months old.
"The nuclear disaster, which happened in 1986 (the year after I was born), had an effect on so many people, including my family when we lived in Italy. The nuclear dust clouds swept westward towards us. The Italian police went round and threw away all the local produce and my mother rushed out to purchase as much tinned milk as possible to feed me, her infant son," he explained in the Chernobyl drone video's description.
"It caused so much distress hundreds of miles away, so I can't imagine how terrifying it would have been for the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian citizens who were forced to evacuate," Cooke added.
According to Petapixel.com, Cooke had been guided by a man named Yevgein when he shot the Chernobyl drone video. Cooke stayed for a week in the area while exploring Chernobyl and the abandoned city of Pripyat nearby.
Despite the disaster, Pripyat is now believed to be safe for visitors, but only for short periods of time as the isotopes released during the disaster have since decayed.
Tourists may choose to explore the area by obtaining day passes. Some workers are also rebuilding parts of the site, but they are only allowed for limited hours per month.
According to scientists, the area captured by the Chernobyl drone will not be completely habitable until another 20,000 years.
"During my stay, I met so many amazing people, one of which was my guide Yevgein, also known as a 'Stalker'," said Cooke of his experience shooting the Chernobyl drone footages. "We spent the week together exploring Chernobyl and the nearby abandoned city of Prypiat. There was something serene, yet highly disturbing about this place."
"Time has stood still and there are memories of past happenings floating around us," he added.
Chernobyl seen through a drone
Postcards from Pripyat, Chernobyl
Chernobyl reclaimed by nature
The Chernobyl drone footage isn't the only masterpiece cooked up by the filmmaker. To see more of Cooke's work, you can check out his website by clicking here.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
