Firefighters just managed to contain a massive wildfire that threatened to reach the abandoned Chernobyl nuclear site. Here's what it looked like at its worst.

Sophia AnkelApr 16, 2020, 00:28 IST

A view from the roof of Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant, showing a forest fire burning inside the exclusion zone on April 10, 2020.AP

A forest fire that had come dangerously close to the defunct, radioactive Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant has been mostly contained, officials said Tuesday.
The fire in northern Ukraine had been burning for more than week. A 27-year-old man is believed to have started the blaze deliberately.
More than 300 firefighters scrambled to contain the blaze, and environmental activists were worried that the fire would cause a radiation risk.
State emergency services said the fire had largely been contained, with a few remaining "hot spots" near the plant yet to be extinguished.
Dramatic images and maps below show just how close the fire was to the nuclear reactor.
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A forest fire in northern Ukraine that had come dangerously close to the abandoned Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant has been largely contained, state emergency services announced Tuesday.

The fire had been burning for more than a week, leaving environmental activists fearing another nuclear risk. The Chernobyl plant is still radioactive.

Dramatic satellite images released by NASA showed just how close the fire was getting to the radioactive site of the 1986 disaster.

Here's what the fire looked like and how close it got to the reactor.

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Today, people are still forbidden to live within 18 miles (30 km) of the power station but supervised tours still attract thousands of tourists every year. A tour guide warned of economic fallout from the forest fire.

Today, people are still forbidden to live within 18 miles (30 km) of the power station but supervised tours still attract thousands of tourists every year. A tour guide warned of economic fallout from the forest fire.

Pripyat and the Chernobyl nuclear site had been abandoned since 1986, when the plant's No. 4 reactor exploded and caused one of the worst nuclear disasters in history.

But after days of fighting the fire, there has been significant progress. On Tuesday, state emergency services said the blaze had been largely contained, though some "hot spots" still have to be cleared out.

But after days of fighting the fire, there has been significant progress. On Tuesday, state emergency services said the blaze had been largely contained, though some "hot spots" still have to be cleared out.

On Monday, Greenpeace Russia warned that the fire could pose a huge radiation risk if it reached the toxic site.

Ukrainian police blamed a 27-year-old local resident for starting the fire deliberately. According to Reuters, he has confessed to starting fires "for fun."

This April 10 photo, taken from the roof of the Chernobyl plant itself, shows just how close the fire had reached.

Aerial photos of the fire showed large flames and thick smoke rising from the 19-mile (30-km) exclusion zone.

More than 300 firefighters were deployed to extinguish the fire, and an additional six helicopters and planes had been battling it from above.

One fire had even reached Pripyat, the ghost town located 2 km (1.24 miles) from the defunct No. 4 nuclear reactor, said tour operator Yaroslav Emelianenko.

The fire quickly spread to surrounding forests in the wider area, as can be seen here in an April 6 satellite image taken by NASA. The Chernobyl nuclear site is circled, while the active fires (at the time) are marked in red dots.

The fire quickly spread to surrounding forests in the wider area, as can be seen here in an April 6 satellite image taken by NASA. The Chernobyl nuclear site is circled, while the active fires (at the time) are marked in red dots.

On April 4, a fire started in a forest in the western part of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Zone of Alienation — or exclusion zone — in northern Ukraine.

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Firefighters just managed to contain a massive wildfire that threatened to reach the abandoned Chernobyl nuclear site. Here's what it looked like at its worst.

Today, people are still forbidden to live within 18 miles (30 km) of the power station but supervised tours still attract thousands of tourists every year. A tour guide warned of economic fallout from the forest fire.

Pripyat and the Chernobyl nuclear site had been abandoned since 1986, when the plant's No. 4 reactor exploded and caused one of the worst nuclear disasters in history.

But after days of fighting the fire, there has been significant progress. On Tuesday, state emergency services said the blaze had been largely contained, though some "hot spots" still have to be cleared out.

On Monday, Greenpeace Russia warned that the fire could pose a huge radiation risk if it reached the toxic site.

Ukrainian police blamed a 27-year-old local resident for starting the fire deliberately. According to Reuters, he has confessed to starting fires "for fun."

This April 10 photo, taken from the roof of the Chernobyl plant itself, shows just how close the fire had reached.

Aerial photos of the fire showed large flames and thick smoke rising from the 19-mile (30-km) exclusion zone.

More than 300 firefighters were deployed to extinguish the fire, and an additional six helicopters and planes had been battling it from above.

One fire had even reached Pripyat, the ghost town located 2 km (1.24 miles) from the defunct No. 4 nuclear reactor, said tour operator Yaroslav Emelianenko.

The fire quickly spread to surrounding forests in the wider area, as can be seen here in an April 6 satellite image taken by NASA. The Chernobyl nuclear site is circled, while the active fires (at the time) are marked in red dots.

On April 4, a fire started in a forest in the western part of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Zone of Alienation — or exclusion zone — in northern Ukraine.