For as long as I can remember, I have been captivated by the story of the Chornobyl disaster. Although many have written about the area and the disaster, little has ever been said about the railroad line that runs through the zone. Writing about just that became one of my primary goals – it was a long journey that entailed teaching myself the Cyrillic alphabet to be able to read maps and timetables, and researching the history of nuclear power and fission from the very beginning. All of that research culminated in a trip to the Zone in May 2014, where this set of photographs were taken.

The result of my research can be found at my website Radioactive Railroad.

This story was also featured in the April 2015 issue of Railfan & Railroad magazine, for the 29th anniversary of the Chornobyl Disaster.