• Home
• Europe
• Russia
• Dyatlov Pass

Radioactivity Report

Radioactivity report of the Dyatlov group was a peculiar test right from the start. It is hard to imagine on what have forced the prosecutor's office to even initiate one. Some theories suggest that some members of the group knew their clothes were contaminated, while others simply point out that several members in the group worked closely with the weapon grade plutonium as part of the job. Below is the official document from the criminal investigation of presence radiation on clothes of the Dyatlov group members.

Radioactivity level report

Few thoughts on the Radioactivity report of the Dyatlov Pass Incident

Radioactivity analysis of the Dyatlov Pass Incident is one of the most important documents of the whole Criminal investigation for several reasons. First of all it clearly points out the presence of the radioactivity on the clothes of the victims of the Dyatlov Pass Incident. Secondly it gives us a possible reason why the Criminal investigation was closed on a first place.

You commonly hear various sites across the internet make claims like Criminal Investigation was classified or others that claim that investigation was not classified. In reality however both statements might be correct. Here is why. Soviet Union at the time of the Dyatlov Pass Incident had two organizations that were the enforcers of the Soviet law. One was the MVD (Министерство Внутренних Дел) or simply our version of police, and another was the almighty KGB (Комитет Государственой Безопасности). While first one was dedicated to solving crime on the private citizens level, the KGB was involved with top secret missions of the state level.

Since Dyatlov Group victims were private citizens, as far as we know, MVD with the prosecutor Ivanov in charge carried out its investigation. This investigation was never classified and hence was never secret. It is true that many of the facts were ignored or tossed away by Ivanov. Many witnesses complained to him for ignoring their statements and throwing away evidence. Yury Yudin, the only member of the Dyatlov Group who didn't make it to the Dyatlov Pass, made several claims that Ivanov was purposely ignoring the facts brought to him. Ivanov for example ignored words of the some of the search party members who claimed they saw military type boots on the slopes of the mountain. Mansi natives that drew balls of lighting over the Dyatlov Pass on the night in question were also shoved aside. Their drawings were destroyed, although Yury Yudin claims that he had seen them. The list goes on. However it is another presumed investigation by the KGB is the one we are more interested it.

First of all we don't have actual documents that prove that this classified investigation was actually carried out. But lets look at the facts at hand. First of all several witnesses were asked by people in the "civilian clothes". It was a Russian secret code for the KGB. These men allegedly came from Moscow and approached several witnesses in the course of the investigation. They never presented themselves officially, but according to Yury Yudin everyone assumed that they were KGB operatives. Officials on the regional level and in the UPI university made it blatantly clear that students and all participants in the case should cooperate with these men.

 Presence of radioactivity on the clothes was not a laughing matter. As soon as preliminary results were made available KGB had to be involved in the case. We don't know whether KGB was involved in the deaths of tourists, but we can with great degree of certainty assume that had to get involved once the investigation got the results of the physical analysis. We don't know why it was done. It is not a normal thing to do in the murder cases, but it was done anyway. Some have suggested that someone knew that tourists were carrying tainted clothes, while others suggested that several of the tourists worked with the radioactive materials so presence of the radioactivity was possible from job exposure.

And lastly the dates in the end of the physical analysis are extremely important. On May 27th we get first preliminary results of the Criminal Investigation. Several items of clothing give us presence of high doses of radioactivity. Now you would think that any sane prosecutor would raise hell. He would send people back on the Dyatlov Pass and along the path that the tourists took. Numerous volunteers with the Geiger counters would sweep the area to determine the source of the radiation. Right? Ivanov does no such thing. Instead he closes the case of the Dyatlov pass Incident the next day on May 28th. Peculiar choice, given that this analysis just turned an ordinary accident or incident into an extraordinary one.

But strangeness doesn't end there. On May 29 Levashev, scientist in charge of the physical analysis is questioned again. If the Criminal Investigation (by the MVD- cops) are closed the day before what is the point of asking follow up question? It is quiet possible that these questions don't relate to the police investigation, but instead it was related to a classified investigation by the KGB. None of the questions that were asked to Levashev involved the tourists or possible damage to them. The focus of this follow up questions are presence of radioactivity, its level and whether it was possible to get this amount under natural conditions. It seems that these questions were intended to justify transfer of the Criminal Investigation from the hands of the MVD to the KGB since radioactivity was in the competence of the state police, not local one.

But then again these are just thought, not concrete evidence. We are not saying that KGB was or wasn't behind the Dyatlov Pass Incident. You can read more about that in the Theories section, but its is plausible that they were involved in the investigation of the case. And this criminal investigation was certainly top secret and classified.

Radioactivity Analysis of the Criminal Investigation into the Dyatlov Pass Incident

Sheet 370

DECISION
(The appointment of expertise)
May 18, 1959. city ​​of Sverdlovsk prosecutor criminologist Ivanov of the Sverdlovsk Region  prosecutor's office reviewed the criminal case of the death of students of Ural Polytechnic Institute. Radiological investigations is required in order to determine the cause of death of the tourists
and resolve the question of radioactive contamination of tourist clothing, guided by Articles 63 and 171 of Code of Criminal Procedure.

[Article 63 deals with inheritance. All items of the tourists were confiscated by the officials so in order to release these items to the families of the dead, prosecutor's office had to appropriately review and analyze all the findings]

[Article 171 deals with items, people or products that might be harmful to the general public. Obviously radioactive tainted clothes had to be dealt with in an appropriate manner]

DECIDED:

It is decided that in the present case of physical and technical expertise to resolve the following issues:
1. Is there a radioactive contamination of clothes and pieces of corpses of the dead tourists?
Expertise will be performed by the Chief radiologist of Sverdlovsk Levashov.

The expert is presented with all the clothing of Zolotarev, Dubinina, Kolevatov and Thibault-Brignoles, as well as parts of their bodies.
Prosecutor criminologist
Junior Counselor of Justice (Signed) / Ivanov /

Sheet 371
Written statement
I hereby confirm that a written statement was made that I was warned about my responsibilities according to the Articles 92 and 95 of the RSFSR Criminal Code
(Signed Levashova)

[Articles 92 and 95 are legal laws that prohibit an expert from lying on the stand, give false information and etc.]

18.V.1959 [May 18, 1959]

Sheet 371, turnover

Note!
In the act of examination objects of research are numbered №1 through №4 and these numbers represent:
№1 Kolevatov
№2 Zolotarev
№3 Thibault-Brignoles
№4 Dubinin
As in the autopsy acts

Ivanov

Sheet 372
-1-
Summary

Bio substrates of solid samples and clothing were directed to a radiological laboratory of Sverdlovsk Gorsanepidstantsii  (City epidemic prophylaxis department) about "grouped units under following designated numbers № 1, 2, 3, 4, they therefore were examined for the content of radioactive substances. Measurements of clothes were made using a radiological device named "Tiss" for which estimation of the natural background radiation was made at 200-300 counts / min. During the expertise and radiometric measurements without ashing in the lead container with cluster counter STS-6 in an amount of 4 units was set maximum pollution in some parts of clothing:
1) brown sweater from the number 4
-9900 Dis / min to 150 cm2.
2) The lower part of the trousers of the number 1
- 5000 disintegrations / min with 150 cm2

3) sweater belt from number 1 -
5600 disintegrations / min with 150 cm2

Table №2 shows contamination of different types of clothing (see. Overleaf).

Table. 2

Sheet 372 Turnover
Table №2
contamination of clothing

The translation was made on the device B-2 in the lead container with a cassette counter STS-6 in an amount of 4 pieces.
Coefficient installation B-2 k = 8,9
background radioactivity in the lead container (before washing) 90 pulses / min
background radioactivity in lead container (after washing), 100 pulses / min


Sheet 273
-2-
Experimental clothes washing showed that the contamination is partially removed, the washing percentage ranges from 30% to 60% of the original data (clothes washing was performed with running cold water for 3 hours).
In determining the type of radiation found that the activity takes place at the expense of the beta particles. Alpha particles and gamma rays are not detected.

The lack of appropriate tools and conditions in the laboratory makes it impossible to carry out a radiochemical and spectrometric analysis to determine the chemical structure of the source and its radiation energy.
Radiometric measurements were made on solid bio substrates using device B-2 (number 2554) in a lead container with counter BFA-25
Calibration is carried out with use of strontium with activity:
1) 7000 disintegrations / min
2) 2000 disintegrations / min
The results of measurements of samples from the numbers 1,2,3,4 are summarized in the table number 1 (see. Overleaf)

Sheet 273 Turnover
Table №1

Conversion factor = 5.5

Sheet 374
-3-
Measurement results of the control samples are summarized in Table 3 № (cm. Below)

Control samples were obtained from the medical examiner Dr. Vozrojdeny. Samples of human tissue belong to an individual who died in the car accident in the city of Sverdlovsk. His tissues also showed the presence of the natural radiological Potassium-40 element at the same amounts as in Table 1 №.

Thus, the findings in Table № № 1 and 3 do not exceed the average data content of radioactive substances in human organs and may be caused by

Sheet 374 Turnover
natural radioactive Potassium- 40. Radiation by type refers to beta particles; Alpha particles and gamma rays are not detected.

CONCLUSIONS:
1) The investigated solid bio substrates contain radioactive substances within the natural content due
to potassium-40.
2) some clothing samples contain somewhat higher amounts of radioactive substances or radioactive
substance that emits beta-radiation.
3) detection of radioactive substances or radioactive substances in the washing of clothing patterns tend to wash, that is they are not caused by the neutron flux and induced radioactivity, and radioactive contamination of beta particles.

Chief radiologist city

27.V.1959 (Signature) / Levashov /

Studies were performed in a radiological laboratory between 18 / V (18th May) -59 (year) 25 / V (May 25th)

Sheet 375

ADDITIONAL question to the expert:
1. Should there be (can it be) an increase of contaminated clothing by the radioactive substances under normal conditions, ie, without being in radioactively-contaminated environment or place?

A:  No. Absolutely not.

2. Are the objects that you studied have been contaminated?

Answer: As it is stated in the conclusion, there is a contamination with radioactive substances / substance / that are beta emitters on certain clothes samples. Thus, for example, from the clipping № 4 - brown sweater at the time of the study had 9.900 beta particle disintegrations per minute per 150 square centimeters, and after washing / over 3 hours/ he gave 5.200 beta particle disintegrations per minute per 150 sq.cm.

For example, we can say that according to the current sanitary regulations that exist in our country, the contamination in the beta particles from 150 square centimeters per minute should not exceed to cleaning / washing / 5.000 decays and after cleaning / washing / should be at a level of a natural background radiation, that is. e. as much cosmic radiation gives to all people and all things in the area. This is the norm for working with radioactive substances.
Cut from №1 - belt of a sweater shows 5.600 decay before a wash, and after washing - 2.700. The lower part of the trousers from the corpse number 1 shows the decay of 5.000 to 2.600 after washing and rinsing. Your data indicates that all of these objects were kept for a long time in a running water, ie, it was already washed for an extended period of time.


3. Can we assume that the clothing is contaminated with radioactive dust?

Answer: Yes, the clothes are contaminated either by a radioactive dust that fell from the atmosphere, or the clothes were exposed to a contaminant while working with radioactive substances. This contamination exceeds, as I have already pointed out, the rate for persons working with radioactive substances.

4. What do you think, what would be the degree of contamination of an individual objects, if we were to take into account that the items you studied were in the running water for about 15 days.

Answer: It is logical to assume that the clothes had a much higher rate of the radioactive contamination. And while the water washed away some particles it didn't do evenly. Certain part of clothing were exposed to water to a various degrees of intensity.


Expert Levashov

Chief radiologist city Levashov (Signed) 05/29/1959