A catastrophic nuclear accident occurred on April 26th, 1986 in the Number Four Reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant near Pripyat, Ukraine. It is one of only two nuclear energy accidents classified as a level 7 event (the maximum classification) on the International Nuclear Event Scale, the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011. 29 firemen and 2 employees died initially. Over 500,000 workers have been continuously on site, trying to contain the radiation, at an estimated cost of $235 billion, as the clean-up continues. The Chernobyl Forum predicts the eventual death toll could reach 4,000 among those exposed to the highest levels of radiation, 200,000 emergency workers, 116,000 evacuees and 270,000 residents of the most contaminated areas. A future total of 3,940 deaths from radiation-induced cancer and leukemia have also been predicted. The Exclusion Zone (where radioactive contamination from fallout is highest and public access and inhabitation are restricted) covers an area of approx. 1,000 square miles. Damage to the soil, fauna & water there will cost billions more & are expected to be a significant risk for a further 100 years.