Japan: Earthquake, Tsunami + Nuclear Disasters

[Coast]

Japan's health ministry recently raised the maximum level of exposure for a person working to address the crisis at the nuclear plant from 100 millisieverts to 250 millisieverts per year. The three workers exposed to radiation Thursday had the highest levels recorded so far, Tokyo Electric said. They had been laying cables in the No. 3 reactor turbine building's basement when they stepped in the water. It seeped into the ankle-height boots of two, according to the power company. The workers remained in the 15-centimeter (5-inch) deep water for about 40 to 50 minutes.

Two of them were admitted to Japan's National Institute of Radiological Sciences: one in his 30s who was exposed to 180.7 millisieverts and the other in his 20s who tested at 179.37 millisieverts. Nishiyama said the third man -- who was exposed to 173 millisieverts but first did not go to the hospital because his boots were high enough to cover his skin -- has also gone to the same research hospital out of "an abundance of caution." The water in this location is typically boiled and has low levels of radiation, Nishiyama said.

The high measure prompted a top official with Nishiyama's agency to urge Tokyo Electric to "improve its radiation management measures." The No. 1 reactor remains a chief concern, with the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum noting Friday that its containment vessel was experiencing "increased" pressure. Earlier, buildups of hydrogen gas had driven up pressure that led to explosions at three of the nuclear plant's reactors, including the No. 1 unit. Nishiyama conceded that "controlling the temperature and pressure has been difficult" for that reactor. Still, he told reporters Friday that the situation then was "rather stable," given indications the pressure was decreasing.

As to that unit's spent nuclear fuel pool, Nishiyama said the hope is to start pumping in fresh water -- rather than seawater, as has been done. Such pools, which are distinct but tied to a given reactor, have nuclear fuel rods that can emit radiation especially if they heat, which is more likely to happen without any functional cooling system in place and when the rods are not fully covered in water. Switching to fresh water, instead of seawater, is also a priority for the No. 2 reactor's core (as well as for its spent fuel pool), said Nishiyama. The aim is to prevent further corrosion and damage inside, which may be worsened by the buildup of salt. Japanese defense minister Toshimi Kitazawa said Friday that a U.S. military ship filled with fresh water is heading toward the Fukushima Daiichi power plant. The ship will serve as a back-up for Japanese systems addressing the same problem, he said.

Beyond the seawater/saltwater issue, water in and around the Nos. 1 and 2 reactors had "high radiation levels," Nishiyama said Friday -- though not as high as that of the No. 3 unit. Thursday's incident has further made the latter reactor a prime focus, and Nishiyama said Friday that "radiation levels are high" in some locales near that unit. He said that authorities were considering "other routes" to accomplish their goals of restarting its cooling systems around No. 3, keeping its spent nuclear fuel pool in check and other aims. Later in the day, Nishiyama said authorities hadn't yet determined how to get around the obstacle. To this end, firefighters from Tokyo and Kawasaki were expected to resume spraying toward the No. 3 reactor and its fuel pool on Friday afternoon, according to Nishiyama.

Efforts are ongoing, too, on the Nos. 4, 5 and 6 reactors - each of which have their own concerns, though less pronounced because the units were on scheduled outages when the quake struck. None of these three units had nuclear fuel inside their reactors, though efforts are ongoing to control temperatures inside the spent fuel pools. On Friday morning, a concrete pump truck was used once again to inject seawater into the No. 4 unit's fuel pool.

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/25/japan.nuclear.reactors/?hpt=T1

[Snowangel-MK]

The death toll has passed 10,000 two weeks after quake

More than 17,440 people are listed as missing, and 2,775 as injured. Hundreds of thousands remain homeless.

Meanwhile, the government says an investigation is under way to establish the source of the radiation leak at the quake-hit Fukushima nuclear plant, which left two workers in hospital. Experts are checking whether the leak came from the reactor itself.

The water that caused the injuries to the two men on Thursday was 10,000 times more times radioactive than a normal sample; the men remain in hospital.

Japan's Nuclear Safety Agency has reiterated its position that it believes the reactor may have been damaged but it is going no further than that, says the BBC's Mark Worthington in Tokyo. The agency has denied any suggestion that the reactor core may have cracked, Kyodo news agency reported.

The two workers had reportedly not been wearing the correct protective boots and had ignored a radiation alarm. A revision of safety measures at the Fukushima plant has been ordered.

In China, the authorities say two Japanese tourists found to have high levels of radiation arrived from Tokyo.The Chinese government says they were sent to a specialist hospital following tests on their luggage and clothes that detected radiation levels "seriously exceeding limits". It remains unclear how the two may have become contaminated as neither traveller is reported to have been within 240km (150 miles) of the Fukushima plant, says the BBC's Mark Worthington.

The Chinese news agency, Xinhua, has reported that abnormal radiation levels have been detected on a ship coming from Japan to Xiamen port in Fujian province.

[Snowangel-MK]

The plant's operator says dangerously high radiation levels recorded in water at one reactor raise the possibility its core has been damaged.

In a televised address, Prime Minister Kan said: "The current situation is still very unpredictable. We're working to stop the situation from worsening. We need to continue to be extremely vigilant."

He also thanked the workers, firefighters and Self-Defence Forces for "risking their lives" to try to cool the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

Japan's chief cabinet secretary Yukio Edano has said a rigorous inquiry is under way to establish the cause of a leak at the plant, after tests showed water in reactor 3 had radiation levels 10,000 times higher than normal.

Japan's Nuclear Safety Agency has reiterated its position that it believes the reactor may have been damaged but it is going no further than that, says the BBC's Mark Worthington in Tokyo.

The agency has denied any suggestion that the reactor core may have cracked, Kyodo news agency reports

The government has asked people still living within 20-30km (12-18 miles) of the nuclear facility to leave voluntarily. Until now, residents in the zone had been advised to stay indoors.

"It is desirable that they voluntarily evacuate. I cannot rule out the possibility that the government will issue an evacuation order for this area if the radiation level goes up further," Mr Edano told a news conference.

Edited March 25, 2011 by MKsnowangel

[Snowyowl9]

Frequent tremors or earthquakes even now 6.4

This is looking like the most expensive diaster on record I read in a paper today.

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake in Mayanmar killing 75 also.

[Snowangel-MK]

Status report: Reactor-by-reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant

By the CNN Wire Staff

cnnAuthor = "By the CNN Wire Staff"; if(location.hostname.indexOf( 'edition.' ) > -1) {document.write('March 25, 2011 -- Updated 1721 GMT (0121 HKT)');}

Here is the latest on the status of each reactor and what was being done to prevent further emissions of radioactive material.

Reactor No. 1

Pressure and temperature levels at the No. 1 reactor continue to fluctuate, though Hidehiko Nishiyama of Japan's nuclear and industrial safety agency told reporters Friday that the situation then appeared "rather stable."

While conceding that "controlling the temperature and pressure has been difficult," Nishiyama said there were indications that the pressure and temperature were both decreasing.

Authorities hope to begin injecting fresh water, rather than seawater as has been done, into the reactor's spent nuclear fuel pool.

According to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, a nuclear industry group basing its data on official government and utility information, the No. 1 unit's reactor core has been damaged, but its containment vessel was not. As of Friday, the reactor's cooling systems were still not operational.

Still, the building was "severely damaged" by an earlier hydrogen explosion.

While electricity issues remain, lighting has been restored for this and the No. 2 reactors.

Reactor No. 2

Like with No. 1, there has been evidence of high radiation levels in spots in and around the No. 2 reactor -- though not as high as that of the No. 3 unit.

Nishiyama said Friday that authorities hope to start injecting fresh water (rather than the current seawater) into the reactor's core and spent nuclear fuel pool. The water is being pumped in to help cool down nuclear fuel rods and prevent the further emission of radioactive material.

Damage is "suspected" in this unit's containment vessel -- the only such vessel so compromised, according to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum. The reactor's core is also thought to be damaged. But the building itself has only been "slightly damaged," the same group reports.

That said, the containment vessel pressure is considered "stable," the nuclear industry trade group reports.

Reactor No. 3

The water that three men stepped in while laying cable in the basement of the No. 3 unit's turbine building had 10,000 times the amount of radiation typical for that locale, Nishiyama said. The workers -- each of whom tested 170 or more millisieverts of radiation, including two with direct exposure on the skin -- were admitted Friday for four days of observation at Japan's National Institute for Radiological Sciences, a research hospital in Chiba.

He noted that the contamination likely came from the reactor's core, adding there's a possibility of "some sort of leakage." That potentially could come from a crack in the reactor core, though Nishiyama cautioned that there is no definitive answer yet on how the radioactivity got into the basement.

Despite the suspected damage to the reactor core -- something that isn't presumed at any of the other five reactors -- the nuclear safety official said there is evidence that pressure is somehow being maintained in the vessel, making it less likely there is a big gash.

"Radiation levels are high" in some locations in and around the reactor, Nishiyama said.

These issues, including the radiation in the water, are prompting authorities to consider "other routes" to address issues at the reactor without exposing workers to excess radiation. Nishiyama said that, as of Friday afternoon, there was no firm plan on workarounds.

Firefighters from Kawasaki, with assistance from the Tokyo fire department, sprayed water Friday on the No. 3 reactor and its spent nuclear fuel pool.

The building of the No. 3 reactor was "severely damaged" after an explosion caused by the buildup of hydrogen gas, reports the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum. Its core reactor is also damaged, its fuel rods are either partly or fully exposed. As to its nuclear spent fuel pool, reports are that the pool was "possibly damaged" and the water level has been low -- a reason for the repeated spraying.

Reactor No. 4

A concrete pump truck was used once again Friday to inject seawater into the unit's fuel pool.

Along with the Nos. 5 and 6 units, the No. 4 was offline on a scheduled outage when the earthquake hit, and as a result the reactor's water level and pressure are continued safe.

But its nuclear spent fuel pool was "possibly damaged," which is why authorities have said its water levels are low and why they've made repeated efforts to fill it up with seawater.

Reactor No. 5

The No. 5 unit appears safe, for now, Nishiyama said. Its capability to cool the fuel rods in the spent fuel pool is working again, according to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum.

As with units Nos. 4 and 6, this reactor was off on a scheduled outage when the quake hit and there are no major issues with the reactor and core itself. The nuclear spent fuel pool is thought to be functioning, aside from continued concerns about powering its cooling system to ensure that the fuel rods contained within remain cool.

As with unit No. 6, three holes were punched in the building earlier in order to relieve pressure and prevent a hydrogen explosion.

Reactor No. 6

The No. 6 unit appears safe, for now, Nishiyama said. Its capability to cool the fuel rods in the spent fuel pool is working again, according to the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum.

The No. 6 reactor was offline when the tsunami struck, and there are no major concerns about the structure or safety of its core or containment vessel. The nuclear spent fuel pool is thought to be functioning, aside from continued concerns about powering its cooling system to ensure that the fuel rods contained within remain cool.

As with unit No. 5, three holes were punched in the building earlier in order to relieve pressure and prevent a hydrogen explosion.

Edited March 25, 2011 by MKsnowangel

[Crepuscular Ray]

So, they're up a brown creek without a propelling instrument...

[Snowangel-MK]

This is looking like the most expensive diaster on record I read in a paper today.

The Japanese government has put the rebuilding cost at $309bn (£191.8bn).

So, they're up a brown creek without a propelling instrument...

Basically YES !!

[ QUOTE: Levels of radioactive iodine in the sea near the Fukushima nuclear plant are eight times higher than a week ago. ]

http-~~-//www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12869184

[The PIT]

Yes back in the news again as large contamination found near the plant and they're not sure where the leak is coming from.

Overall a good demonstration how things can go wrong and the lack of ability of the industry to deal with accidents when they occur. Could be even worse if it wasn't for the brave souls trying to battle the reactors.

[Snowangel-MK]

Radioactive Cesium With A Half-Life Of Approximately 30 Years Is Being Released At About 60 Percent Of Chernobyl Levels

Why does it seem as though the nuclear crisis just keeps getting worse with each passing day ?

TEPCO has announced that extremely radioactive water is now leaking from reactors 1, 2, and 3 !

Authorities have announced that it is very likely that the containment vessel in reactor 3 has been breached. That is extremely alarming because reactor 3 is the one that uses plutonium-uranium mixed oxide fuel (“MOX fuelâ€).

So is plutonium being released into the surrounding environment?

That would be absolutely catastrophic. But what we know is happening already is quite catastrophic. According to a recent NewScientist article, radioactive iodine-131 is being released at 73% of the level that it was being released at during the Chernobyl disaster. But iodine-131 only has a half-life of about 8 days. According to that same article, radioactive cesium-137 is being released at 60% of the level that it was being released at during the Chernobyl disaster. Cesium-137 has a half-life of approximately 30 years. That means that all of this cesium is going to be around for a very, very long time.

The damaged reactors at Fukushima are still emitting radioactive material and will probably be for quite a while.

In addition, the Fukushima complex contains a whopping 1760 tons of nuclear material.

Chernobyl only contained 180 tons. Also, it is important to keep in mind that the Chernobyl disaster only burned for 10 days.

So all those that are claiming that the Fukushima disaster could not possibly eclipse the Chernobyl disaster are completely delusional.

Most of the media coverage about the radiation coming from Fukushima in recent days has focused on radioactive iodine, but the truth is that cesium may be the greater threat over the long-term.

[picog]

Radioactive Cesium With A Half-Life Of Approximately 30 Years Is Being Released At About 60 Percent Of Chernobyl Levels

Why does it seem as though the nuclear crisis just keeps getting worse with each passing day ?

TEPCO has announced that extremely radioactive water is now leaking from reactors 1, 2, and 3 !

Authorities have announced that it is very likely that the containment vessel in reactor 3 has been breached. That is extremely alarming because reactor 3 is the one that uses plutonium-uranium mixed oxide fuel (“MOX fuelâ€).

So is plutonium being released into the surrounding environment?

That would be absolutely catastrophic. But what we know is happening already is quite catastrophic. According to a recent NewScientist article, radioactive iodine-131 is being released at 73% of the level that it was being released at during the Chernobyl disaster. But iodine-131 only has a half-life of about 8 days. According to that same article, radioactive cesium-137 is being released at 60% of the level that it was being released at during the Chernobyl disaster. Cesium-137 has a half-life of approximately 30 years. That means that all of this cesium is going to be around for a very, very long time.

The damaged reactors at Fukushima are still emitting radioactive material and will probably be for quite a while.

In addition, the Fukushima complex contains a whopping 1760 tons of nuclear material.

Chernobyl only contained 180 tons. Also, it is important to keep in mind that the Chernobyl disaster only burned for 10 days.

So all those that are claiming that the Fukushima disaster could not possibly eclipse the Chernobyl disaster are completely delusional.

Most of the media coverage about the radiation coming from Fukushima in recent days has focused on radioactive iodine, but the truth is that cesium may be the greater threat over the long-term.

The potential plutonium contamination is extremely worrying. My understanding is that you only need 1 molecule in your lungs to develop lung cancer years later. Do you know if that is correct? It's odd how we have not heard about the Cesium 137 on the TV news. Rebuilding the towns around the plant must now be in serious doubt — as if the people don't have enough to deal with already.

[The PIT]

So far the so called media hype has been close to mark while the constant down playing by experts should perhaps be investigated. Green peace who I consider mostly consisting of cranks got this right at the very beginning.

[Beverley Lass]

I see there is an Horizon Special programme on this

tonight.

'Japan Earthquake' with Dr Iain Stewart.

BBC2 8pm - 9pm

Meanwhile the news today seems worse.

"Radioactivity in water at reactor 2 at the quake-damaged Fukushima nuclear plant has reached 10 million times the usual level, company officials say.

Workers trying to cool the reactor core to avoid a meltdown have been evacuated.

Earlier, Japan's nuclear agency said that levels of radioactive iodine in the sea near the plant had risen to 1,850 times the usual level.

The UN's nuclear agency has warned the crisis could go on for months.

It is believed the radiation at Fukushima is coming from one of the reactors, but a specific leak has not been identified.

Leaking water at reactor 2 has been measured at 1,000 millisieverts/hour - 10 million times higher than when the plant is operating normally."

However, the Japanese Govt say,

"Airborne radiation around the plant is decreasing"

This is from the BBC online news pages.

BBC Link

BL.

[Iceberg]

I do feel sorry for the people of Japan, all their pri-minister keeps saying it that the nuclear company needs to be more transparent(doesn't he get the fact that he is the country's leader and so should have taken personal control of it days ago!!!! ).

I am not sure its really worst case tbh, it's pretty much going as many expected given the failure of the Japanese to really deal with it, they kept saying last week that once electricity was restored things would improve, when it was at best a long shot that these cooling system would still be working after the various explosions.

There only real attempted action seems to be to keep using water cannons which frankly isn't going to work and would only at best delay things ( at least from what I've read ).

The Russians even did better than this.

[Snowangel-MK]

Chernobyl-Style Yellow Rain Causes Panic In Japan

Yellow rain that fell in Tokyo and surrounding areas caused panic amongst Japanese citizens and prompted a flood of phone calls to Japan’s Meteorological Agency, with people concerned that they were being fed the same lies as victims of Chernobyl, who were told that yellow rain which fell over Russia and surrounding countries after the 1986 disaster was merely pollen, the same explanation now being offered by Japanese authorities/

“A health official at the Tokyo metropolitan government also said there is a possibility that the rain contained radioactivity but not at a level to have had adverse effects on people’s health,†adds the Japan Today report.

Given the fact that Japanese authorities have been habitually deceptive about the Fukushima crisis from start to finish, assurances that the yellow powder was merely a result of air-borne pollen particles are dubious at best. With people living in Tokyo already being told that tap water is unsafe to drink, along with contaminated vegetables and milk from certain areas near Fukushima, the fact that they were panicked by yellow rain is unsurprising.

Although pollen can turn rain a yellow colour, the fact that the phenomenon occurred a couple of hundred kilometers south of the radiation-spewing Fukushima nuclear plant has stoked alarm, and understandably so given the fact that victims of Chernobyl nuclear fallout in 1986 were also told by authorities that yellow rain was harmless pollen, when in fact it was deadly radioactive contamination

An article entitled “Remembering Chernobyl,â€

http://dailybruin.detroitsoftworks.com/index.php/article/2006/04/remembering-chernobyl

documents how children in Belarus happily splashed around in puddles of yellow rain having been assured by Russian authorities that it was merely pollen, when in fact it was a toxic mixture of radioactivity that had been blasted from the Chernobyl plant 80 miles away. The effects of this “pollen†soon confirmed that those puddles of yellow rain contained something far more sinister, namely iodine-131, caesium-137, strontium-90 and plutonium-239.

Whether or not the yellow rain falling in Japan is radioactive remains to be seen !

[Beverley Lass]

Hopefully in this case it is just that .. pollen.

I recall one eye witness to the earthquake there saying

the air briefly turned yellow from the mass pollen

shaken up.

I do think they have 'yellow rain' to some extent every

year.

Eek, sounds scary though when you read about Chernobyl.

BL.

[Coast]

Radioactivity soars in reactor 2, workers evacuated

Crisis far from end, says U.N. nuclear chief

TOKYO, March 27 (Reuters) - Workers were pulled back from a reactor building at Japan's earthquake-wrecked nuclear plant on Sunday after potentially lethal levels of radiation were detected in water there, a major setback for the dash to avert a catastrophic meltdown.

The operator of the facility said radiation in the water of the No. 2 reactor was measured at more than 1,000 millisieverts an hour, the highest reading so far in a crisis triggered by a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11.

That compares with a national safety standard of 250 millisieverts over a year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says a single dose of 1,000 millisieverts is enough to cause haemorrhaging.

The Japanese government said that, overall, the situation was unchanged at the plant -- which lies 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo even if there were hitches from time to time.

"We did expect to run into unforeseen difficulties, and this accumulation of high radioactivity water is one such example," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told a news briefing.

Yukiya Amano, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), cautioned that the nuclear emergency could go on for weeks, if not months more. "This is a very serious accident by all standards," he told the New York Times. "And it is not yet over."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/27/japan-idUSL3E7ER03220110327

[Rustynailer]

Can anybody say whether or not radioactive fission has stopped on site. Is this just a leak in containment of slowly cooling fuel or has some fuel got hot through fission again and melted a hole in containment?

Thanks.

Russ

[Coast]

Can anybody say whether or not radioactive fission has stopped on site.

Probably, but not from here. I guess the relevant authorities are keeping this sort of info under wraps at the moment.

[Snowangel-MK]

Liquefaction & unbelievable ground movement in Makuhari

This is really incredible footage of what’s happening on a geophysical level in Japan !

[Beverley Lass]

Still very high, but not as bad as reported earlier ..

The operators of a stricken Japanese nuclear plant have apologised for a "mistake" in reporting a radiation spike 10 million times above normal.

Tokyo Electric Power Company, which has previously been criticised by officials for its handling of the crisis at the plant, said it got the readings wrong.

Despite the mistake, the radiation spike at reactor 2 was still very high and enough to evacuate workers.

The Fukushima Daiichi plant was damaged in the 11 March quake and tsunami.

The death toll has now passed 10,000, and more than 17,000 people are missing.

'Extremely high'

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) apology related to water readings at reactor 2 at the plant, 240km (150 miles) north of Tokyo.

It had said radiation levels reached 10 million times higher than normal in the cooling system but because the level was so high the worker taking the reading had to evacuate before confirming it with a second reading.

A spokesman for Japan's nuclear watchdog, Hidehiko Nishiyama, said the level of radiation in puddles near reactor two was confirmed at 1,000 millisieverts an hour.

"It is an extremely high figure," Mr Nishiyama said.

A cancer risk is evident with an exposure of 100 millisieverts a year.

Liquefaction & unbelievable ground movement in Makuhari

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn3oAvmZY8k

This is really incredible footage of what’s happening on a geophysical level in Japan !

Wow, yes, that's amazing to see. Very scary.

(the dog certainly seems disturbed !)

BL

Edited March 27, 2011 by Beverley Lass

[Snowangel-MK]

Tokyo Electric Power Company, which has previously been criticised by officials for its handling of the crisis at the plant, said it got the readings wrong.

BL

Seems to me they have got a lot more wrong than just the readings..even using sea water seems to have been a terrible mistake;

[salt encrustments from evaporated seawater could clog cooling pipes and diminish the cooling effect; Huge amounts of seawater have been pumped in the reactors and spent fuel pools leaving crystallized salt after evaporation. TEPCO is starting to be concerned that a salt crust on the fuel rods will hamper smooth water circulation in the reactor pressure vessel, thus diminishing the cooling effect. TEPCO have announced that they have already starting injecting freshwater into the No. 1 and No. 3 reactor cores.]

And where is all this contaminated water going ? Obviously some of it is evaporating, is the rest just soaking into the ground or running into the sea ?

I didn't realise until I read this report that there had been so many workers injured at the Fukushima plant..

[Casualties so far ..

-2 workers of cooperative firm were injured at the occurrence of the

earthquake, and were transported to the hospital on March 11th.

-Presence of 2 TEPCO employees at the site is not confirmed on March 11th.

-1 TEPCO employee who was not able to stand by his own holding left chest

with his hand, was transported to the hospital by an ambulance on March

12th.

-4 workers were injured and transported to the hospital after explosive

sound and white smoke were confirmed around the Unit 1on March 12th.

-1 subcontract worker at the key earthquake-proof building was

unconscious and transported to the hospital by an ambulance on March

12th.

-The radiation exposure of 1 TEPCO employee, who was working inside the

reactor building, exceeded 100mSv and he was transported to the hospital

on March 12th.

-2 TEPCO employees felt bad during their operation in the central control

rooms of Unit 1 and 2 while wearing full masks, and were transferred to

Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station for consultation with a medical

advisor on March 13th.

-11 workers were injured and transported to Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power

Station etc. after explosive sound and white smoke were confirmed around

the Unit 3. One of the workers was transported to the Fukushima Medical

University Hospital on March 14th.

-At approximately 10 pm on March 22nd, 1 worker who had been working on

setting up a temporary power panel in the common pool was injured and

transported to Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station where the

industrial doctor is.

-At approximately 1:30 am on March 23rd, 1 worker who had been working on

transporting a temporary power panel in the common pool was injured and

transported to Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station where the

industrial doctor is.

-On March 24th, it was confirmed that 3 workers from cooperative

companies who were in charge of cable laying work in the 1st floor and

the underground floor of turbine building were exposed to the radiation

dose of more than 170 mSv. 2 of them were confirmed that their skins on

legs were contaminated. Although they were decontaminated, since there

was a possibility of beta ray burn injury, they were transferred to

Fukushima Medical University Hospital. The third worker was also

transferred to Fukushima Medical University Hospital on March 25th.

After that, the 3 workers were transferred to National Institute of

Radiological Sciences in Chiba Prefecture.]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=115x283778

Is Tepco's attitude towards ensuring worker safety adequate for the tasks of dealing with such a highly dangerous situation ?

[Rustynailer]

Probably, but not from here. I guess the relevant authorities are keeping this sort of info under wraps at the moment.

I see. Did you know there is 4,277 tons of nuclear fuel spent or unspent on site?

That is enough to cause a global problem.

All fuel rods have to do to start fission again is get close to one another. Fission is caused by the "critical mass" of close proximity of rods. If one shakes them about and then drains all the coolant, fission or critical mass is a high possibility. There are six reactors and numerous spent fuel ponds on site containing all the fuel used there ever, I believe. Right back to 1973 I think. There is a problem with the wisdom of using seawater as a coolant too. The USA has helped by delivering lots of freshwater to the site. Apparently saltwater has crystallized and clogged up the cooling pipes.

Anyway not to worry the whole world will help if necessary. I just hope they ask for help every time they need it.

I pray there is no more extra large earthquakes in the area for the next few tens/hundreds of years, those poor people have had to put up with enough.

Russ

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/03/18/business-financial-impact-as-japan-earthquake-plutonium_8363305.html link to show how much fuel on site

Edited March 27, 2011 by Rustynailer

[HighPressure]

I am not sure if anyone has posted this link?

Direct from the IAEA its updated several times a day and seems more in depth then any other source of information I have found:

http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/tsunamiupdate01.html

As for the situation itself, the media are now bored of it and unless it makes people glow green or keel over in the street they have more 'interesting' subjects to deal with. None the less from what I understand a lot of people are going to die prematurely from this, new born children will be effected and the land around the plant continues to be contaminated. It may take 20yrs to see the full effects of this accident but I would not be surprised if it eventually accounts for the same number again as killed directly by the quake/tsunami ???

[Snowangel-MK]

There is speculation among government and utility officials that the core of Unit 3 has been breached and primary containment has failed, and that a meltdown may be occurring in the core of the reactor, this seems to be based on the fact that the water at the reactor building was so radioactive that it lead to “beta burns†on the feet and ankles of three workers. If this is true it would result in a serious leak of radiation at the only reactor at the site that contains the especially-toxic MOX (a combination of uranium and plutonium) fuel. Mixed Oxide fuel is recycled from nuclear warheads and is more dangerous than normal uranium fuel because it contains plutonium, which heats up more than uranium and can thus cause hot spots during a "loss of coolant incident“. Plutonium also makes control rods and boron less effective in slowing down a nuclear reaction--two crucial elements in the emergency shut-down of a reactor during a "criticality incident." It also releases more harmful radiation than pure uranium fuel in the case of a meltdown. Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency says there is no data, however, to suggest the reactor vessel has been cracked or damaged.

It is unclear why the workers weren’t equipped with footwear that could protect them from 15 cm of water. Judging from the photos from the power plant, it would appear that a lot of workers are just wearing normal shoes as part of their radiation suits. There also seems to be some folks with plastic bags duct-taped over their shoes.

Dr. Edwin Lyman, a Senior Scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists’ (UCS) Global Security Program has suggested levels of radioactive fallout — particularly cesium-137 — from Fukushima may be nearing Chernobyl levels. In his comments, Lyman also noted that he believed the “danger that the workers are facing†at the power plant itself “are greater than TEPCO suggests†and suggested, as have others recently, that it’s possible the area around the plant could become uninhabitable for decades.

According to Greenpeace’s statement, based on their analysis from Dr. Helmut Hirsch; The total amount of radionuclides iodine-131 and caesium-137 released since the start of the accident amount to three INES 7 accidents. In contrast to the Chernobyl accident which involved one nuclear reactor, Fukushima has suffered major failures at four. Dr Hirsch concludes, “Taking all the releases from the Fukushima-Daiichi reactors together this is obviously an INES 7 with the possibility that it is three INES 7's, taking each reactor separately which results in a release of 100,000 Tbq each.â€

Obviously, Greenpeace has an “agendaâ€, so their analysis should be taken with that in mind. But as we continue to hear more and more independent scientists and scientific bodies comparing the situation at Fukushima — which shows no real signs of ending anytime soon, despite slow progress reportedly being made each day to bring the disaster under control — it becomes more and more difficult to avoid some of the worst-case scenarios and analyses now emerging, as based on actual, real-time data gathered from the ongoing crisis.

Some experts believe that the main challenge now will be the hugely expensive clean-up operation of contaminated land, water and agriculture in the surrounding area. Such a clean-up can be done, but it's hugely expensive, and government officials may decide to abandon certain swathes of the surrounding area instead. But other experts say the crisis remains serious, and could escalate, especially given the unpredictability of the build up of salt from the use of seawater as a coolant. Pure water has now replaced the sea water being used that was causing corrosion because of an accumulation of tons of salt. Scientists say chloride in the salt could also break open the zirconium alloy layer of protection around the fuel rods which prevents volatile radioactive elements from escaping.

Sadly there is no "off" switch for a self catalysing nuclear reaction, they will probably end up entombing this just like Chernobyl.

[Coast]

Another tremor this morning off Myagi:

A strong earthquake struck the troubled northeastern region of Japan, prompting a tsunami warning.

The earthquake, measuring 6.5 on the Richter Scale, was pinpointed to 50 miles east of Oshika peninsula in Miyagi prefecture, an area still recovering from the devastation of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Following the new earthquake, the Japanese authorities issued a 20 inch tsunami warning for the Pacific coastal region which was later lifted, with no reports of immediate casualties or further damage. Japan's weather agency said that the strong tremor was believed to be the latest in a string of aftershocks to hit the region following the massive earthquake just over two weeks ago. A large clean-up and restoration project remains in place across the northeast of Japan following widespread devastation and the loss of more than 27,000 lives. Fears of radiation contamination are continuing to hamper procedures and are causing widespread unease following damage to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8410322/Japan-earthquake-strong-quake-prompts-tsunami-warning-for-disaster-zone.html