Pripyat greenhouses.

Various produce was grown at the Pripyat greenhouses (pictured above) in the north of the city prior to April 1986. After the accident these greenhouses were used for many years by scientists to study vegetation growth under radiation contamination. Once the scientists left, however, the facilities fell into disrepair and thieves claimed anything valuable left behind.

Pripyat hospital maternity ward.

Pripyat Hospital operating room.

Pripyat Hospital, as one might imagine, was by far the creepiest part of the tour. We walked passed dark room after dark room through a maze of hallways while drug vials and broken bottles cracked underneath our feet. Bottomless lift shafts and stairwells that descended into pitch black also added to the dreadful scene. It was not a pleasant place to be. According to some accounts, a group of the first contaminated firefighters from the night of the accident were brought here before being transported to hospitals in Moscow. Sadly, at least one of them never left here alive. Other people who have visited here have said that they felt like they were being watched while passing through the hallways and rooms in this building, while I didn't feel the same thing as them, there is definitely a feeling of dread here.

Pripyat Stadium.

This is Pripyat Stadium, once home to a running track, football pitch and many other sports amenities. In the days after the accident, the stadium was used as a base to land helicopters employed to contain reactor fires and limit further radiation leaks at the CNPP. The open grounds also served as a landing hub for transporting the sick and wounded from the plant to the hospital. Needless to say that due to the presence of contaminated helicopters in the center of the stadium, radiation levels are high, but we could safely walk around the perimeter.