The Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Hams provides much needed respite and medical attention to children who continue to be devastatingly affected by the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. We do this by inviting children to come to the South Hams for a month each year for a holiday, healthcare appointments and time which, crucially, allows the radiation to clear out their bodies. Here’s what we do, why we do it and how you can help.

The background

The Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Hams is the regional branch of the Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline organisation, however, while there are branches of the charity across the UK, all donations to the Totnes and South Hams link stay with them.

The Chernobyl nuclear accident is widely considered to be the greatest environmental catastrophe in the history of humanity, and its repercussions are still being felt by people living in the area today.

On 26 April 1986, the fourth reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Plant, 12km south of the Belarusian border, exploded. Belaurus was the country hit hardest by the disaster, with 75% of the fallout landing on its territory and affecting approximately 90% of its area. The people of Chernobyl were exposed to radioactivity 90 times greater than the Hiroshima bomb.

Here, the ground is still contaminated today and many of the families are growing their own food in that contaminated ground. There is still not a lot of working the area and living conditions continue to be run down.

The result is that people living in the area, including children, are getting a constant input of low level radiation, leading to immunity issues, childhood cancers and eye problems. It’s over 30 years since explosion, so more recently we have seen the childbearing years for those who were children at the time of the disaster. Many have found they are infertile and others are frightened to have children because of worries about potential health problems.

For example, medical experts expect as many as 40% of children exposed to Chernobyl's radiation to develop thyroid cancer over the next 30 years. In 1988, 83 children were revealed to have thyroid gland problems. In 1989 the number was 807. In 1990 it had risen to 9,924. In addition to that, the death rate in Belarus has consistently exceeded birth rate.

It is currently estimated that it will take up to 400 years to rid Belarus of contamination. The Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline was set up in 1992 to support families and children from Belarus.

Starting Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Hams

Sue Wyeth set up the Totnes and South Hams branch of the Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline, more than 10 years ago, when one little girl in particular touched her heart. She met Alyona, who’s now in her twenties, when she was a shy little girl, arriving in the UK in a pair of leather boots so enormous that they were impeding her ability to walk properly.

When Alyona went home, Sue worried about what she was going back to at home, so went to visit and on seeing the environment that families were still exposed to every day she felt compelled to try to help.

Sue says: "Once you’ve seen it and realise what’s going on, you just have to do something.”

What Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline does

Since 1992 the charity has brought over 55,000 children to the UK for respite breaks, all on the efforts of local branches, each responsible for their own planning and organisation.

Each year, Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Ham invite 10 children from Belarus, all of whom are around nine years old, to spend a month with host families in the South Hams (two children stay for two weeks in each home). That four-week period is long enough to let the radiation clear out their bodies thanks to the clean air, clean water and clean food.

While they are here, the children also go to see dentists and opticians, and are given a full health check up. However, our volunteer team also aim to make it a fun holiday for the kids as well, with lots of activities, often provided by local businesses and individuals. After all, having fun is what a trip to the South Hams is all about.

Supporting Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Hams

Everything we do at Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline Totnes and South Hams is supported by a team of volunteers, so to keep doing what we do, we fundraise throughout the year, depending on donations and support. We also ask for clothing donations for the boys and girls, and volunteer hosts for the children each year. All funds raised by the local link remain with the local link rather than going to the main charity.