Who could have imagined on 25 April 1986, that 26 years
later, a small but unique group of farmers would gather in a Cumbrian pub, united
by events unfolding thousands of miles away in the Ukraine? For, the following day, the
Chernobyl nuclear
reactor exploded, with catastrophic consequences. Within hours, the soft, gentle rain falling
on the beautiful Cumbrian fells was depositing a silent, deadly legacy that
would contaminate the grazing of thousands of sheep. Last night, that unique gathering was able to
reflect on the impact of that explosion and finally celebrate the lifting of
sheep movement restrictions
