The first major Russian film about the consequences of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the recovery of those who paid with their lives to avert a global catastrophe. And turned a large part of the European continent into a huge alien land and uninhabited desert. The main character is the firefighter Alexey, who at first glance does not seem like a hero. Engineer Valerka and diver Boris volunteer to go with him on a dangerous raid. There is almost no time to make a detailed plan. As the molten core approaches, the water in the reactor vessel is getting hotter every hour. The team faces a deadly mission, a most dangerous one - to go to hell and perhaps the most terrible consequences of the disaster.