A radiation detector crackles ominously as a helicopter circles the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the live-action footage shot by director Vladimir Shevchenko's crew - the first to film the results of the Chernobyl meltdown. In a televised address by Mikhail Gorbachev on 14 May 1986, the Russian leader outlines the scope of the terrible problems created by that April 26th disaster; this video then goes on to document the heroism of doctors and firemen, the evacuation of residents, the decision to produce a "sarcophagus" to cover the still-burning reactor, and the contributions made by many Soviets in the weeks following the meltdown - highlighting the ability of the Russian people to respond to this crisis. A Soviet official calls the community response an act of mass heroism and cites individual workers for their courage. The cowardice of a few - a teacher who deserted his class, an engineer who hid out in the villages - is the subject of a party meeting; offenders are expelled, not
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