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This photo taken in 2011 shows the Nionoska military base, in the Arkhangelsk region, in the Russian Far North. On August 8, 2019, an explosion at this military base killed two people.t AFP

In Russia, the latest assessment of the accident at a military test site in the Far North is five dead and three wounded. And the population is worried about possible radioactive pollution. Greenpeace Russia has decided to send its own experts on site.

In Russia, after the very strong explosion Thursday on a military base, the population is worried and tries to get supplies of iodine tablets to counter any radiation. The Russian Ministry of Defense assures however that in this accident which made according to a last balance sheet five dead and 3 wounded, no radioactive product was released in the atmosphere.

But local authorities contacted by the environmental organization Greenpeace found radiation peaks well above normal after the explosion. " Right after the explosion, there was a spike in radiation, " says Rach Alimov of Greenpeace Russia, contacted by phone. The Ministry of Defense immediately denied. But the regional administration has published this information. And this information has now disappeared from his site.

But this information has been confirmed by the Ministry of Emergency Situations. Its local branch admits an increase in radiation at a level 20 times higher than normal. Such an increase could indicate that radioactive assets have been released into the air. So we need to know what these substances are and also know what really happened. "

So the NGO decided to send its own experts on site to carry out measurements.

In a statement issued Thursday, the Ministry of Defense said the accident occurred during the test of a "liquid propellant rocket engine." The military base, located in Nionoksa, opened in 1954 and is used for missile testing of the Russian fleet. Ballistic missiles are tested, says AFP.