A photographer visited the abandoned towns around Chernobyl more than 20 times over the past 25 years, and the captivating photos show just how suddenly time stopped in its tracks after the disaster

Katie Canales

2019-05-06T14:52:00Z

chernobyl exclusion zone photograph — "The buildings decay, and the natural world fills in the void," the photographer David McMillan told Business Insider. Courtesy of David McMillan/Business Insider

On April 26, 1986, an explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, in what was then the Soviet Union, resulted in a cloud of radioactive particles spreading across parts of Europe.
The Scottish-born Canadian photographer David McMillan has visited the abandoned and contaminated areas inside the exclusion zone, including the city of Pripyat, Ukraine, more than 20 times over the course of 25 years.
He compiled the resulting photographs into a book that was published called "Growth and Decay: Pripyat and the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone."

The photographer David McMillan told Business Insider that he grew up during the Cold War, when tensions between the US and the Soviet Union posed threats of nuclear war.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 57 — Sinking Boat on the Pripyat River, Chernobyl, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: History

"I had this kind of fear," McMillan said of growing up during that time period.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 97 — Kindergarten, Pripyat, 2011. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he became concerned about the role nuclear weapons could play in political warfare.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 53 — Schoolroom, Village of Shipelicki, 1995. Courtesy of David McMillan

Then, on April 26, 1986, a reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine exploded, shooting out toxic radioactive particles across parts of Europe.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 79 — School Auditorium, Pripyat, 2008. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Business Insider

About 350,000 people were evacuated, with most leaving their homes, places of work, and worldly belongings behind forever.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 55 — Village Hill, 1995. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Business Insider

In the years following the disaster, McMillan said he kept up with the news about it, and he eventually decided he had to check it out for himself.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 78 — Science Classroom with Tree, Pripyat, 2009. Courtesy of David McMillan

"I was environmentally concerned as a photographer," McMillan said. "This seemed like an obvious place to go."

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 101 — Doors to Kindergarten Nap Room, Pripyat, 2004. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he decided to venture to the exclusion zone that was now permanently contaminated to see what the aftermath of a nuclear disaster looked like.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 25 — Basketball Court, Pripyat, 2007. Courtesy of David McMillan

"This place had experienced it," McMillan said. "It wasn't a war, of course — it was an accident — but I wanted to see what would happen to any part of the world if this occurred."

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 83 — Broken Glass Block, School Gymnasium, 2006. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he went to the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone for the first time in 1994, eight years after the nuclear meltdown.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 85 — Gymnasium Storage Room, Pripyat, 2004. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he started his journey by looking for people who could help get him in and by obtaining a visa because, at the time, you needed one to enter Ukraine.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 51 — Village Political Sign, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

"The most difficult thing was to find someone who knew someone in the exclusion zone," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 52 — Bust of Lenin, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he eventually connected with a man who lived in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, about 90 miles south of the exclusion zone, who agreed to get him in for a fee.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 84 — Green Gymnasium, Pripyat, 2009. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he stayed on that first trip for five days with a driver and an interpreter and was allowed to photograph anything he wanted.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 104 — Mural, School Hallway, Pripyat, 2003. Courtesy of David McMillan

Many of his photos were taken in the city of Pripyat, Ukraine, a city about three miles northwest of the power plant.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 14 — Path in Pripyat, 1996. Courtesy of David McMillan

The city was once home to 50,000 people, most of whom worked at the plant, McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 54 — Church Interior, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Atlas Obscura

The average age of the city's population at the time was about 26 or 27 years old, McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 68 — Toy Horse on Kindergarten Floor, Pripyat, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Atlas Obscura

So there were lots of kindergartens, hospitals, and schools, with amenities for entertainment like movie theaters and swimming pools.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 61 — Stairway, Entrance to the Palace of Culture, Pripyat, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Atlas Obscura

"It was considered a model city for the rest of the Soviet Union," McMillan said. "People wanted to live there."

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 100 — Door to Kindergarten Washroom, Pripyat, 2000. Courtesy of David McMillan

Now those once glistening establishments are abandoned, deteriorated, and still contaminated, and Pripyat is one of the most unlivable places in the zone, McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 67 — Classroom Corner, Pripyat, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

"Nothing could be salvaged," McMillan said. "It's lost, it's gone."

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 19 — Tire Swings, Pripyat, 2002. Courtesy of David McMillan

The scenes depicted in the photos eerily show how residents were so quickly evacuated after the explosion in 1986.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 50 — Kindergarten with Tree, Pripyat, 2012. Courtesy of David McMillan

McMillan said they left their furniture, pets, dental and school records, among other items, and were taken to other cities.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 107 — Patient Records, Hospital, Pripyat, 2002. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: History

"They had to essentially start over from zero with all their credentials left behind," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 75 — School Gymnasium with Tree and Balance Beam, 2006. Courtesy of David McMillan

Some of the now crumbled structures were still being constructed at the time of the accident and were never even used, McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 24 — Basketball Court, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

A yellow Ferris wheel was being built for May Day, a significant Soviet holiday on May 1, and was finished just before the disaster on April 26. "It was never used," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 37 — Ferris Wheel, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Business Insider

The solitary Ferris wheel is one of many locations that McMillan returned to and photographed over the course of 25 years on more than 20 trips.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 38 — Ferris Wheel, Pripyat, 2007. Courtesy of David McMillan

He didn't set out with the intention of photographing the same scenes years apart, but "that just started to happen," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 28 — Mural near Kindergarten, Pripyat, 1998. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he didn't know how freely he would be allowed to travel, but after his first visit, he said he didn't think he'd seen enough and felt like there was more to do.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 29 — Mural near Kindergarten, Pripyat, 2006. Courtesy of David McMillan

"Maybe it would be interesting to compare what it was once like," McMillan said he thought at the time.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 76 — Boxing Ring, Palace of Culture, Pripyat, 1996. Courtesy of David McMillan

With each visit, the sites he frequented over the years decayed even more. "Things deteriorate pretty quickly," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 77 — Boxing Ring, Palace of Culture, Pripyat, 2012. Courtesy of David McMillan

A striking example of that is a series of photos taken in a school hallway of flags representing the countries of the Soviet Union.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 113 — Flags in Kindergarten Stairwell, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

"Over the years, the flags had fallen and become damaged," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 114 — Flags in Kindergarten Stairwell, Pripyat, 2003. Courtesy of David McMillan

The Soviet Union itself fell apart in 1991, just five years after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 115 — Flags in Kindergarten Stairwell, Pripyat, 2008. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: History

In a photo taken in 2012, the flags are no longer recognizable.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 116 — Flags in Kindergarten Stairwell, Pripyat, 2012. Courtesy of David McMillan

Another sign of Pripyat's Soviet history is a photo taken by McMillan in 1997 of a portrait of Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Russian Communist Party.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 71 — Portrait of Lenin, Pripyat, 1997. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: Britannica

The portrait is also unrecognizable in a photo taken in 2009.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 72 — Portrait of Lenin, Pripyat, 2009. Courtesy of David McMillan

Other photos show the many facilities that Pripyat residents had access to, such as swimming pools.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 86 — Swimming Pool, Pripyat, 1996. Courtesy of David McMillan

A photo taken seven years later shows the pool completely drained and deteriorating.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 87 — Swimming Pool, Pripyat, 2003. Courtesy of David McMillan

Over time, McMillan said he also noticed the vegetation taking over.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 39 — Bumper Cars, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

"The buildings decay, and the natural world fills in the void," McMillan told Business Insider.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 40 — Bumper Cars, Pripyat, 2008. Courtesy of David McMillan

McMillan said he was actually most afraid of buildings collapsing while he was exploring the zone, even more so than the danger posed by radiation.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 111 — Kindergarten Locker Room, Pripyat, 2012. Courtesy of David McMillan

"Some of the buildings, you won't be able to tell if you're inside or outside," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 112 — Book Store, Pripyat, 2012. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said it had likely been years since anyone had walked into the buildings he was exploring.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 12 — View of the Nuclear Power Plant from Pripyat Rooftop, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

Besides the "Samosely," or self-settlers, that live illegally inside the exclusion zone, no one makes their way into this area.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 13 — View of the Nuclear Power Plant from Pripyat Rooftop, 2011. Courtesy of David McMillan

Read more: Photos show what daily life is really like inside Chernobyl's exclusion zone, one of the most polluted areas in the world

But since 2010, the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone has turned into an unlikely tourist destination. Visitors come to the site via bus.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 90 — Plasticene Sculptures, Pripyat, 1995. Courtesy of David McMillan

Source: The Guardian

McMillan said they're brought in by small tour companies.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 91 — Plasticene Sculptures, Pripyat, 2009. Courtesy of David McMillan

And he said the tour doesn't take them anywhere that isn't considered safe or off the beaten track.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 95 — Shelves and Toys, Kindergarten, Pripyat, 1997. Courtesy of David McMillan

McMillan said the idea of Chernobyl being a tourist destination seems strange to him, but he said he acknowledges that he is also there in an unconventional way.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 96 — Shelves and Toys, Kindergarten, Pripyat, 2011. Courtesy of David McMillan

"They're there with their smartphones taking selfies," McMillan said.

david Mcmillan chernobyl photo feature — School Hallway, Pripyat, 2004. Courtesy of David McMillan

McMillan said the tourists pay a fee to get in.

david Mcmillan chernobyl photo feature — School Hallway, Pripyat, 2006. Courtesy of David McMillan

"People seem to want to do it, and it's become a source of income for a lot of people," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 65 — Classroom Entrance, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

The radiation levels obviously don't stop the tourists from visiting.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 66 — Classroom Entrance, Pripyat, 2005. Courtesy of David McMillan

Nor do they stop McMillan, who said he doesn't have any health issues from his time spent in the exclusion zone.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 73 — Yellow Room, Pripyat, 1994. Courtesy of David McMillan

"As far as I know, I'm fine," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 74 — Yellow Room, Pripyat, 2005. Courtesy of David McMillan

He said he has learned from his experience traveling to and photographing what was left of society in the zone.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 93 — Music Room, Kindergarten, Pripyat, 1995. Courtesy of David McMillan

"You become grateful for the life you have," McMillan said.

chernobyl exclusion zone photo feature 94 — Music Room, Kindergarten, Pripyat, 2009. Courtesy of David McMillan

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