Bloggers criticised for taking ‘insensitive’ photos at the Chernobyl site

Anything for the content, it seems.

Instagram users visiting Chernobyl are facing harsh criticism for sharing insensitive photos from the site of the incident. Since HBO's mini-series about the explosion aired, considerably higher numbers of people have opted to travel to the exclusion zone to visit the site of reactor four. This has included bloggers and influencers, some of whom have shared photos of themselves in Pripyat that many have deemed insensitive and opportunistic. Instagram's 'Chernobyl' geotag shows users posing in front of the city's abandoned theme park, dressing up in hazmats suits, and pulling questionable stretches in the exclusion zone. One of the photos also shows a topless women stripping off in Pripyat. https://www.instagram.com/p/ByXy2MIoSxb/?utm_source=ig_embed Many users have taken to Instagram to comment on the bloggers' and influencers' photos, criticising them for being "insensitive," "disrespectful," and "dumb." https://twitter.com/lettipop/status/1136582183328649216 https://www.instagram.com/p/ByVCakhF8Xa/?utm_source=ig_embed https://www.instagram.com/p/BylXephAEkD/?utm_source=ig_embed https://www.instagram.com/p/BylaV2riG7P/ Reuters reports that one Chernobyl tourist agency has seen a 40 percent increase in bookings since the show aired on TV. Sergiy Ivanchuk, director of SoloEast tours, told the agency that he saw a 30 percent increase in tourists going to the area in May 2019 compared to the same period the previous year. He added that bookings for June, July, and August have increased by a further 10 percent since the HBO and Sky Atlantic show premiered. English-speaking tours of the disaster site work out at about $100 (€88), with visitors getting a glimpse of reactor four and the exclusion zone, as well as a walk around the deserted town of Pripyat. All five episodes of Chernobyl are now available to watch on NOW TV.