Ukraine Says Forest Fires Near Chernobyl Have Sparked Radiation Concern

The structure of the New Safe Confinement (NSC) covering the 4th block of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, which was destroyed during the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, is pictured on Nov. 22, 2018. Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images

Energoatom, a Ukrainian regulatory agency that operates nuclear power plants in the country, warned on Monday that forest fires near Russian-held Chernobyl have raised radiation concerns.

In a March 21 statement, the Ukrainian parliament said that at least seven different fires were spotted near the plant by satellite images of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Sentinel-2 satellite.