WillowM
Well-known member
I am from Latvia, my Grandpa was sent to Chernobyl. Luckily he is still alive , but with lots of health conditions. Most of his friends/colleagues who also went to Chernobyl are now dead (they would be in their late 60's /early 70's now).
One day he went to work and military officers came to their building and asked every single man who worked there to immediately leave work and they were transferred into these big trains that normally transport cows and taken straight to Chernobyl. My Grandmother and her children back then had no clue what happened and why her husband didn't come back home that day. He only had a chance to contact them after 3 days being away.
Grandpa also told me that they only sent Latvian men ( from his workplace ) and Russian nationality men could stay at home. But as far as I am aware it was different in each workplace. Probably the big boss in his workplace was Russian nationality and only allowed for Latvian men to be taken, because back in 1980's the system was messed up and Latvians had very little rights to anything.
One day he went to work and military officers came to their building and asked every single man who worked there to immediately leave work and they were transferred into these big trains that normally transport cows and taken straight to Chernobyl. My Grandmother and her children back then had no clue what happened and why her husband didn't come back home that day. He only had a chance to contact them after 3 days being away.
Grandpa also told me that they only sent Latvian men ( from his workplace ) and Russian nationality men could stay at home. But as far as I am aware it was different in each workplace. Probably the big boss in his workplace was Russian nationality and only allowed for Latvian men to be taken, because back in 1980's the system was messed up and Latvians had very little rights to anything.