overall , it was estimated that close on five million inhabitants of southern belarus and northern ukraine were directly affected , in some way , by the events of that fateful spring day , and this figure would be amplified , too , if you factored in the economic affect on the whole countrys population of the continuing cleanup operation of the contaminated territory , the loss of revenue from now deserted towns and agricultural land , and the maintenance of the power station to ensure that a similar disaster did not happen again .