The Problem With Nuke Foxholes

 ARD (German public TV) news carried a piece this morning, which might be propaganda for Ukraine....or it might have various elements of truth in it.

So the story goes....at Chernobyl....about three weeks ago...the Russians came and did their conquering 'act', and established military control of the nuke plant (yes, several of the reactors still function) and the surrounding area.

This past couple of days....the Russians left.

Well....there's some chatter going on that in disturbing some things....those Russian troops got a fair dose of radiation.

BS?  Normally, I might suggest that....but Ukrainians who've come into the local area after the Russians left...noted one interesting situation.  The Russians dug foxholes and trenches.

If they did....they probably got down into a layer that had radiation.

So there is this suggestion....when some symptoms started to appear, questions got put upon the Russian officers, and the 'trust-factor' went 'south' in a hurry.

There's also a story that various pieces of equipment....perhaps thought by the Russian soldiers as having value to sell later....were taken from the contaminated site.  If this were true....it'd suggest a pretty crappy health worry.

I paused over this.  Generally, the smarter crowd in Russia....don't end up in the Army....they go to the civilian world where careers are established and money is made.  I could see a thousand-odd Army guys being at Chernobyl....digging defensive trenches and foxholes, and a week later....having some 'burns' and headaches.  A doctor or two would examine the problems....make a phone call, and then quietly tell the commander that maybe seventy-percent of his men are having a radiation-poisoning episode.  The commander would freak out and call his general, and a retreat of some type would be managed.

But if this scenario played out....would you do with 700-odd Russian Army guys with light-to-moderate radiation poisoning?  How freaked out would they get, and where would you 'hide' them?  

In a case where you had just moderate radiation....if you just removed yourself from the mess....'healing' would start up, and you'd notice some symptoms gone within a month.  Your body would resolve the rest from  a couple of month....on up to two years.  Fatigue and weakness would be your chief symptoms.

If this were a bigger deal?  Nausea, diarrhea and high fever would occur, and you might be a on-going situation.  You'd be normally brought back to some rest-area and be of no value for at least two to three months.  

On my 'stupid-scale'?  Well....digging a defensive trench or foxholes in a nuke disaster area would be a solid 'ten'.  But I doubt if any of the 'leaders' out of Moscow would figure this into their military operation plan.  

If you were looking for a 4-star horror-movie script?  Russian soldiers in some radiated foxhole turning into zombies would work in this case.