In 1986 a nuclear reactor exploded at Chernobyl. One-hundred-ninety tons of radioactive material poisoned a quarter of the Russian population and the Russian landscape. The traces are still visible. Many Russians become ill from the radioactive materials that they ingest daily with their food and drinking water. A new generation has to contend with a whole range of physical, neurological and psychological disorders. Paul Fusco photographed daily life in the affected region for CHERNOBYL RADIATION (1997). He concentrated primarily on the child care institutions in Minsk. Many babies that are so deformed that they are no longer wanted by their parents end up there. Although the nuclear reactor at Chernobyl is now encased in steel and concrete, it continues to leak radioactive materials.

Paul Fusco (United States, 1930) began as an army photographer in Korea, and thereafter worked as a photographer for LOOK Magazine. He has been a member of the Magnum photo agency since 1973, and published in magazines such as Time, Life and Newsweek.

Courtesy Magnum Photos, France