Five technicians were suspended by wires, battling against ice and smoke on a frigid day as they worked near a massive steel structure rising the height of 40 stories above the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Their mission was critical: to address a significant breach caused by a drone strike, which had created a hole approximately 540 square feet wide, endangering the integrity of the protective shell enveloping Reactor No. 4.

This wasn’t just any breach; Ukrainian officials claimed it was a deliberate act, with a Russian drone equipped with a high-explosive warhead hitting the structure at 1:59 a.m. on Friday. Nuclear safety experts have labeled this incident as one of the riskiest attacks since the onset of the war in Ukraine nearly three years ago.

Remarkably, even after the drone strike, radiation levels at the site remained stable, with the concrete and steel sarcophagus successfully containing dangerous materials beneath the damaged structure. Reports confirmed that there were no casualties from this alarming incident.

However, Ukrainian authorities were swift to condemn the audacity of the attack, particularly as it occurred just before an important world leaders' summit in Munich, potentially raising international tensions and concerns over nuclear safety amid ongoing hostilities.