-
IP addresses are NOT logged in this forum so there's no point asking. Please note that this forum is full of homophobes, racists, lunatics, schizophrenics & absolute nut jobs with a smattering of geniuses, Chinese chauvinists, Moderate Muslims and last but not least a couple of "know-it-alls" constantly sprouting their dubious wisdom. If you believe that content generated by unsavory characters might cause you offense PLEASE LEAVE NOW! Sammyboy Admin and Staff are not responsible for your hurt feelings should you choose to read any of the content here. The OTHER forum is HERE so please stop asking.
Japan 8.8 earthquake & Tsunami
- Thread starter Cestbon
- Start date
Re: I am big in japan
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/lXAdK8DDPjg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
wow so many place affected - like tama city puro puroland aka hello kitty land - lots of japanese kids there
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/lXAdK8DDPjg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
wow so many place affected - like tama city puro puroland aka hello kitty land - lots of japanese kids there
Radiation rises in Tokyo water
Don't let babies under age 1 drink from the tap, officials say
By MINORU MATSUTANI
Staff writer
Radioactive iodine exceeding official levels for infants was detected Wednesday in water in a purification plant in Katsushika Ward, Tokyo, prompting the metropolitan government to advise residents not to let babies younger than 1 year old drink tap water or powdered milk made with it in the 23 wards and five cities.
The news immediately emptied mineral water at supermarkets. This prompted the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to announce later in the day it will distribute a total of 240,000 550-milliliter bottles of water to Tokyo households with infants.
The iodine-131 was detected in water taken Tuesday from the Kanamachi Purification Plant. The level was 210 becquerels per liter of water, more than double the recommended level of 100 becquerels for infants stipulated in the Food Sanitation Act, according to Ei Yoshida, manager of Tokyo's Waterworks Bureau.
"The level is not dangerous unless you keep drinking the water for a long period of time," Yoshida told a news conference. "If there is nothing else to drink, you can let babies drink the water every once in a while."
Water from the plant goes to all of the capital's 23 wards as well as the suburbs of Musashino, Mitaka, Machida, Tama and Inagi in western Tokyo.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry backed Yoshida's remark.
"The regulated level, 100 becquerels per liter, is a level at which people can have babies drink for a long time without worrying about radiation," said Kazuya Kumagai of the ministry's Water Supply Division.
He advised parents to use bottled water to make powdered milk, but added that they shouldn't panic even if babies have drunk tap water.
Later in the day, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano offered assurances that adults can drink tap water and use it in everyday life.
If stores run out of bottled water, boiling faucet water will help reduce toxicity to some extent, radiation experts said.
Immediately after the announcement by the metropolitan government, a team of radiotherapists, physicists and nuclear engineers at the University of Tokyo released their take on the contamination of tap water on the group's Twitter account.
"Iodine-131, when contained in water, can be removed to some extent by boiling it," the team said.
Iodine-131's half-life — the period by which the radiation level is halved — is eight days.
Three hundred becquerels per liter of water is the standard regulated level for all people over the age of 1, but pregnant and breast-feeding women may want to tighten the standard to 100 becquerels per liter, Kumagai said.
The metropolitan government collected water from its Kanamachi, Asaka and Ozaku purification plants Tuesday to check the density of radioactive substances.
It found no iodine-131 at the Asaka facility in Saitama Prefecture, but 32 becquerels per liter were found at the Ozaku facility in Hamura, western Tokyo.
Officials also checked for cesium-137, another radioactive substance, at the three purification plants, and did not find any traces, Yoshida said.
It collected water from the same three plants Wednesday and the preliminary report showed that water at the Kanamachi plant had 190 becquerels per liter of iodine-131, he said.
The high density "undoubtedly results from the Fukushima nuclear plant accident. We just don't know the details as to how we got this high level," Yoshida said.
The metropolitan government has more than three purification plants but chose the three to check water because they cover all three sources of water supply for Tokyo residents. The Kanamachi plant uses water from the Edo River watershed, Asaka uses the Ara River watershed and Ozaku uses the Tama River watershed.
Don't let babies under age 1 drink from the tap, officials say
By MINORU MATSUTANI
Staff writer
Radioactive iodine exceeding official levels for infants was detected Wednesday in water in a purification plant in Katsushika Ward, Tokyo, prompting the metropolitan government to advise residents not to let babies younger than 1 year old drink tap water or powdered milk made with it in the 23 wards and five cities.
The news immediately emptied mineral water at supermarkets. This prompted the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to announce later in the day it will distribute a total of 240,000 550-milliliter bottles of water to Tokyo households with infants.
The iodine-131 was detected in water taken Tuesday from the Kanamachi Purification Plant. The level was 210 becquerels per liter of water, more than double the recommended level of 100 becquerels for infants stipulated in the Food Sanitation Act, according to Ei Yoshida, manager of Tokyo's Waterworks Bureau.
"The level is not dangerous unless you keep drinking the water for a long period of time," Yoshida told a news conference. "If there is nothing else to drink, you can let babies drink the water every once in a while."
Water from the plant goes to all of the capital's 23 wards as well as the suburbs of Musashino, Mitaka, Machida, Tama and Inagi in western Tokyo.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry backed Yoshida's remark.
"The regulated level, 100 becquerels per liter, is a level at which people can have babies drink for a long time without worrying about radiation," said Kazuya Kumagai of the ministry's Water Supply Division.
He advised parents to use bottled water to make powdered milk, but added that they shouldn't panic even if babies have drunk tap water.
Later in the day, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano offered assurances that adults can drink tap water and use it in everyday life.
If stores run out of bottled water, boiling faucet water will help reduce toxicity to some extent, radiation experts said.
Immediately after the announcement by the metropolitan government, a team of radiotherapists, physicists and nuclear engineers at the University of Tokyo released their take on the contamination of tap water on the group's Twitter account.
"Iodine-131, when contained in water, can be removed to some extent by boiling it," the team said.
Iodine-131's half-life — the period by which the radiation level is halved — is eight days.
Three hundred becquerels per liter of water is the standard regulated level for all people over the age of 1, but pregnant and breast-feeding women may want to tighten the standard to 100 becquerels per liter, Kumagai said.
The metropolitan government collected water from its Kanamachi, Asaka and Ozaku purification plants Tuesday to check the density of radioactive substances.
It found no iodine-131 at the Asaka facility in Saitama Prefecture, but 32 becquerels per liter were found at the Ozaku facility in Hamura, western Tokyo.
Officials also checked for cesium-137, another radioactive substance, at the three purification plants, and did not find any traces, Yoshida said.
It collected water from the same three plants Wednesday and the preliminary report showed that water at the Kanamachi plant had 190 becquerels per liter of iodine-131, he said.
The high density "undoubtedly results from the Fukushima nuclear plant accident. We just don't know the details as to how we got this high level," Yoshida said.
The metropolitan government has more than three purification plants but chose the three to check water because they cover all three sources of water supply for Tokyo residents. The Kanamachi plant uses water from the Edo River watershed, Asaka uses the Ara River watershed and Ozaku uses the Tama River watershed.
why the twit do that? there are lots of hungry people in east japan now, why dun he cut it up and cook for those people suffering.
now he throw it back to sea without helping it get back to it's strength by feeding it
how does a weak porpoise going to catch fish?
it is going to die.
Japanese rescuers save finless porpoise stranded in rice paddy by tsunami
Animal rescuers working to save imperiled dogs and cats in the wake of Japan's earthquake and tsunami wound up helping a very different, but just as needy, sort of animal: a young finless porpoise.
The porpoise had become trapped in a flooded rice paddy in Japan's Miyagi prefecture after the March 11 tsunami and was struggling and growing weak in the shallow water.
"A man passing by said he had found the [porpoise] in the rice paddy and that we had to do something to save it," Ryo Taira, a pet-store owner who has been instrumental in rescuing animals affected by the earthquake, told Reuters.
Taira and other volunteers rushed to save the animal, fashioning a stretcher of sorts from objects -- including a futon mattress -- strewn in the area. But they were unable to catch the porpoise with a net.
Eventually, Taira managed to catch the porpoise in his arms -- a feat he speculated to Reuters was possible only because the creature was so exhausted from its ordeal.
According to Agence France-Presse, damage to nearby aquariums caused by the disaster left the rescuers with no choice but to release the porpoise into the ocean. They wrapped it in wet towels for the trip back to open water and set it free.
Taira told Reuters that the porpoise's condition seemed to improve when it was returned to the ocean. "I don't know if it will live, but it's certainly a lot better than dying in a rice paddy," Reuters quoted the rescuer as telling Japan's Asahi Shumbun news organization.
The story was a bright spot for marine mammal fans after news spread that 24 dolphins being kept in pens in the harbor at Taiji, the village made famous for its annual dolphin hunt in the documentary "The Cove," all died in the tsunami.
Finless porpoises -- several subspecies of which are native to coastal areas of Asia -- are so named because they do not have dorsal fins.
Want to help the animals of Japan? Discovery's Daily Treat blog has a great list of organizations working to rescue and care for dogs, cats and other creatures affected by the disaster, and the Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support Facebook page offers regular updates.
now he throw it back to sea without helping it get back to it's strength by feeding it
how does a weak porpoise going to catch fish?
it is going to die.
Japanese rescuers save finless porpoise stranded in rice paddy by tsunami
Animal rescuers working to save imperiled dogs and cats in the wake of Japan's earthquake and tsunami wound up helping a very different, but just as needy, sort of animal: a young finless porpoise.
The porpoise had become trapped in a flooded rice paddy in Japan's Miyagi prefecture after the March 11 tsunami and was struggling and growing weak in the shallow water.
"A man passing by said he had found the [porpoise] in the rice paddy and that we had to do something to save it," Ryo Taira, a pet-store owner who has been instrumental in rescuing animals affected by the earthquake, told Reuters.
Taira and other volunteers rushed to save the animal, fashioning a stretcher of sorts from objects -- including a futon mattress -- strewn in the area. But they were unable to catch the porpoise with a net.
Eventually, Taira managed to catch the porpoise in his arms -- a feat he speculated to Reuters was possible only because the creature was so exhausted from its ordeal.
According to Agence France-Presse, damage to nearby aquariums caused by the disaster left the rescuers with no choice but to release the porpoise into the ocean. They wrapped it in wet towels for the trip back to open water and set it free.
Taira told Reuters that the porpoise's condition seemed to improve when it was returned to the ocean. "I don't know if it will live, but it's certainly a lot better than dying in a rice paddy," Reuters quoted the rescuer as telling Japan's Asahi Shumbun news organization.
The story was a bright spot for marine mammal fans after news spread that 24 dolphins being kept in pens in the harbor at Taiji, the village made famous for its annual dolphin hunt in the documentary "The Cove," all died in the tsunami.
Finless porpoises -- several subspecies of which are native to coastal areas of Asia -- are so named because they do not have dorsal fins.
Want to help the animals of Japan? Discovery's Daily Treat blog has a great list of organizations working to rescue and care for dogs, cats and other creatures affected by the disaster, and the Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support Facebook page offers regular updates.
total disgrace, land of gundam beaten by USA irobot
The robots called in to help prevent nuclear meltdown at Fukushima plant
As the Fukushima Fifty bravely battle to prevent meltdown at the Tsunami-hit Japanese nuclear plant in Japan, robots have been sent to help with the clean-up.
They include the U.S.-made iRobot gadgets, which move about on tracks and have a single crane-like arm, will certainly be used to move rubble and test radiation levels.
Japan's Mitsui firm last week sent its scanning Disaster Monitoring Robot, or Moni-Robo, to the Daiichi site as well.
On track to help: An iRobot 710 Warrior robot, which can lift rubble and debris weighing up to 220lb
And Canada’s Inuktun Services are also fielding inquiries about how their video camera-wielding androids might be of use.
However, questions remain over what role the robot can take and whether to use them in the reactor core.
It comes as three members of the Fukushima Fifty were today rushed to hospital with suspected radiation poisoning after coming into contact with uranium-tainted water.
Although robots can deal with radiation, they would be damaged by the tons of seawater being poured into the Daichi No 1 and No 2 reactors in a bid to stop the fuel rods overheating.
Nevertheless, the prospect of deaths may force nuclear teams to use the gadgets more extensively.
The four iRobot systems - two Packbots and two Warriors - reached Tokyo Monday night along with six engineers from the firm’s headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts.
iDetect: One of the Packbots is fitted with a sensor that can detect radioactivity
Multiple uses: The iRobot PackBot, made in Massachusetts, can sense, lift and climb steep hills
Given that the Packbot is designed primarily for explosive ordinance disposal and the Warrior is a prototype that will not be commercially available until this summer, iRobot's engineers still need to discuss the gadgets' capabilities, operation and limitations with plant owners, Tokyo Electric Power Company.
The 150lb iRobot Warriors were modified so they could carry a 3in wide fire hose should more water be needed somewhere.
Each unit features an arm that can lift up to about 220lb as well as an adjustable track system that allows it to climb stairs and travel up to 8mph.
One of the Packbots was fitted with a sensor that can detect radioactivity.
Each 24lb Packbot is equipped with a three-link arm that can lift up to about 30lb, move debris and potentially relocate hazardous materials.
In addition to being able to negotiate stairs, the Packbot can travel at up to 5.8mph and climb grades as steep as 60 degrees.
Fine movements: The iRobot Warriors can also pick up and manipulate both big and small objects
Questions: It is unknown whether the robots will be used in the reactors as the face water damage
The roles that robots might play in Japan will depend upon how deeply radiation may have penetrated the facility's walls and floor, William Whittaker,a Carnegie Mellon University robotics professor and director of the Field Robotics Center at the school's Robotics Institute in Pittsburgh, told the American Scientist website.
He and several colleagues built robots in the late 1970s and early 1980s to inspect and perform repairs in the basement of Three Mile Island nuclear plant following the near meltdown there in 1979.
Other robots which may play a role include Mitsui's 1,300lb Moni-Robo.
The one-armed robot is designed to be operated remotely—from nearly a mile away—and includes a camera that can take video as well as 3-D thermographic images.
Risks: Three workers were exposed to radioactivity while laying electrical cables today at the Fukushima plant
The 5ft-tall Moni-Robo rolls along on tracks and also features sensors for measuring radioactivity and detecting combustible gases.
Inuktun, based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, specializes in making remote-controlled video cameras and ‘crawler’ robots in a variety of sizes, ranging from the Versatrax 100 (which fits in a pipe 5in in diameter) to the Versatrax 450 TTC (which is 15in wide).
These crawler bots are used primarily to inspect confined spaces such as pipes and sewers. ‘We have not sent any equipment to Japan specifically for the earthquake or Daiichi reactor site, but we do have a representative company in Tokyo that has some of our demonstration equipment,’ Inuktun president Colin Dobell said.
‘We believe it is being deployed, but we have not been able to confirm anything.’
god damn it nippon show them the gundam
The robots called in to help prevent nuclear meltdown at Fukushima plant
As the Fukushima Fifty bravely battle to prevent meltdown at the Tsunami-hit Japanese nuclear plant in Japan, robots have been sent to help with the clean-up.
They include the U.S.-made iRobot gadgets, which move about on tracks and have a single crane-like arm, will certainly be used to move rubble and test radiation levels.
Japan's Mitsui firm last week sent its scanning Disaster Monitoring Robot, or Moni-Robo, to the Daiichi site as well.
On track to help: An iRobot 710 Warrior robot, which can lift rubble and debris weighing up to 220lb
And Canada’s Inuktun Services are also fielding inquiries about how their video camera-wielding androids might be of use.
However, questions remain over what role the robot can take and whether to use them in the reactor core.
It comes as three members of the Fukushima Fifty were today rushed to hospital with suspected radiation poisoning after coming into contact with uranium-tainted water.
Although robots can deal with radiation, they would be damaged by the tons of seawater being poured into the Daichi No 1 and No 2 reactors in a bid to stop the fuel rods overheating.
Nevertheless, the prospect of deaths may force nuclear teams to use the gadgets more extensively.
The four iRobot systems - two Packbots and two Warriors - reached Tokyo Monday night along with six engineers from the firm’s headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts.
iDetect: One of the Packbots is fitted with a sensor that can detect radioactivity
Multiple uses: The iRobot PackBot, made in Massachusetts, can sense, lift and climb steep hills
Given that the Packbot is designed primarily for explosive ordinance disposal and the Warrior is a prototype that will not be commercially available until this summer, iRobot's engineers still need to discuss the gadgets' capabilities, operation and limitations with plant owners, Tokyo Electric Power Company.
The 150lb iRobot Warriors were modified so they could carry a 3in wide fire hose should more water be needed somewhere.
Each unit features an arm that can lift up to about 220lb as well as an adjustable track system that allows it to climb stairs and travel up to 8mph.
One of the Packbots was fitted with a sensor that can detect radioactivity.
Each 24lb Packbot is equipped with a three-link arm that can lift up to about 30lb, move debris and potentially relocate hazardous materials.
In addition to being able to negotiate stairs, the Packbot can travel at up to 5.8mph and climb grades as steep as 60 degrees.
Fine movements: The iRobot Warriors can also pick up and manipulate both big and small objects
Questions: It is unknown whether the robots will be used in the reactors as the face water damage
The roles that robots might play in Japan will depend upon how deeply radiation may have penetrated the facility's walls and floor, William Whittaker,a Carnegie Mellon University robotics professor and director of the Field Robotics Center at the school's Robotics Institute in Pittsburgh, told the American Scientist website.
He and several colleagues built robots in the late 1970s and early 1980s to inspect and perform repairs in the basement of Three Mile Island nuclear plant following the near meltdown there in 1979.
Other robots which may play a role include Mitsui's 1,300lb Moni-Robo.
The one-armed robot is designed to be operated remotely—from nearly a mile away—and includes a camera that can take video as well as 3-D thermographic images.
Risks: Three workers were exposed to radioactivity while laying electrical cables today at the Fukushima plant
The 5ft-tall Moni-Robo rolls along on tracks and also features sensors for measuring radioactivity and detecting combustible gases.
Inuktun, based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, specializes in making remote-controlled video cameras and ‘crawler’ robots in a variety of sizes, ranging from the Versatrax 100 (which fits in a pipe 5in in diameter) to the Versatrax 450 TTC (which is 15in wide).
These crawler bots are used primarily to inspect confined spaces such as pipes and sewers. ‘We have not sent any equipment to Japan specifically for the earthquake or Daiichi reactor site, but we do have a representative company in Tokyo that has some of our demonstration equipment,’ Inuktun president Colin Dobell said.
‘We believe it is being deployed, but we have not been able to confirm anything.’
god damn it nippon show them the gundam
HELLO, where are the source of water? Just because you bottle them,doesnt make it saf
TOKYO—Japanese beverage makers are ramping up production of mineral water amid increasing demand from quake-devastated areas and escalating fears about radioactive contamination from the heavily damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, and have asked foreign mineral-water producers to increase shipments to Japan.
Tokyo Issues Warning on Water Food Fears Prompt Import Curbs Full Coverage: WSJ.com/JapanQuake The Tokyo Metropolitan Government said radioactive iodine levels in Tokyo's tap water fell to within the government's threshold for consumption by infants Thursday after rising above the permissible level earlier in the week, but there are lingering concerns among many Japanese about the safety of the water.
Coca-Cola (Japan) Co. has been operating all of its seven mineral-water plants in Japan at full capacity since the March 11 earthquake, a company spokeswoman said Thursday.
There has been some disruption of output at one of its plants north of Tokyo, due to Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s decision to implement power outages in its service regions, in order to prevent more widespread power outages. However, "we are trying to respond to increasing demand as much as possible," she said.
Suntory Holdings Ltd.'s four domestic mineral-water plants are also running at a full capacity. Suntory also bottles and distributes PepsiCo Inc. products in Japan.
Residents hoard bottled water after a government warning that the level of radioactive iodine in some of Tokyo's tap water is high enough to harm infants. WSJ's Mariko Sanchanta and Yumiko Ono explains what all this means.
Kirin Holdings Co. said its mineral-water business, which imports Volvic-branded water from France's Groupe Danone SA, has already asked Danone to send more shipments to Japan. But a Kirin spokesman said it will take about three months for extra supplies to be shipped via sea freight, underscoring the difficulty of meeting the short-term surge in demand.
Otsuka Holdings Co.'s beverage unit, which sells Crystal Geyser mineral-water product lines from the U.S. in Japan, has asked its U.S. counterpart to increase output to meet increasing orders from retailers and other business clients.
Domestic sales of mineral water, including domestic output and imports, amounted to 2.518 million kiloliters in 2010, up 0.4%, according to the Mineral Water Association of Japan. Imported mineral water accounted for about 17% of the total.
A Tokyo city official said a sample collected earlier Thursday at the Kanamachi purifying plant in north of Tokyo contained an iodine-131 reading of 79 becquerels a kilogram, less than the 100 becquerel-a-kilogram permissible limit for infants.
Tuesday, a sample at the Kanamachi waterworks contained an iodine reading of 210 becquerels a kilogram. Another sampling Wednesday, also from Kanamachi, showed an iodine reading of 190 becquerels a kilogram.
In line with the elevating levels of the radioactive material, the Tokyo government said Wednesday that tap water shouldn't be consumed by infants in Tokyo's 23 wards and several Tokyo cities.
TOKYO—Japanese beverage makers are ramping up production of mineral water amid increasing demand from quake-devastated areas and escalating fears about radioactive contamination from the heavily damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, and have asked foreign mineral-water producers to increase shipments to Japan.
Tokyo Issues Warning on Water Food Fears Prompt Import Curbs Full Coverage: WSJ.com/JapanQuake The Tokyo Metropolitan Government said radioactive iodine levels in Tokyo's tap water fell to within the government's threshold for consumption by infants Thursday after rising above the permissible level earlier in the week, but there are lingering concerns among many Japanese about the safety of the water.
Coca-Cola (Japan) Co. has been operating all of its seven mineral-water plants in Japan at full capacity since the March 11 earthquake, a company spokeswoman said Thursday.
There has been some disruption of output at one of its plants north of Tokyo, due to Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s decision to implement power outages in its service regions, in order to prevent more widespread power outages. However, "we are trying to respond to increasing demand as much as possible," she said.
Suntory Holdings Ltd.'s four domestic mineral-water plants are also running at a full capacity. Suntory also bottles and distributes PepsiCo Inc. products in Japan.
Residents hoard bottled water after a government warning that the level of radioactive iodine in some of Tokyo's tap water is high enough to harm infants. WSJ's Mariko Sanchanta and Yumiko Ono explains what all this means.
Kirin Holdings Co. said its mineral-water business, which imports Volvic-branded water from France's Groupe Danone SA, has already asked Danone to send more shipments to Japan. But a Kirin spokesman said it will take about three months for extra supplies to be shipped via sea freight, underscoring the difficulty of meeting the short-term surge in demand.
Otsuka Holdings Co.'s beverage unit, which sells Crystal Geyser mineral-water product lines from the U.S. in Japan, has asked its U.S. counterpart to increase output to meet increasing orders from retailers and other business clients.
Domestic sales of mineral water, including domestic output and imports, amounted to 2.518 million kiloliters in 2010, up 0.4%, according to the Mineral Water Association of Japan. Imported mineral water accounted for about 17% of the total.
A Tokyo city official said a sample collected earlier Thursday at the Kanamachi purifying plant in north of Tokyo contained an iodine-131 reading of 79 becquerels a kilogram, less than the 100 becquerel-a-kilogram permissible limit for infants.
Tuesday, a sample at the Kanamachi waterworks contained an iodine reading of 210 becquerels a kilogram. Another sampling Wednesday, also from Kanamachi, showed an iodine reading of 190 becquerels a kilogram.
In line with the elevating levels of the radioactive material, the Tokyo government said Wednesday that tap water shouldn't be consumed by infants in Tokyo's 23 wards and several Tokyo cities.
Re: HELLO, where are the source of water? Just because you bottle them,doesnt make it
New Republic: The Meltdown That Japan Really Fears
A Japanese rescue worker stands amongst the debris in Iwate prefecture on Thursday. With the dead or missing toll rising daily and an ongoing crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, Japan is struggling to recover from the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country nearly two weeks ago.
Radiation in Tokyo has not reached anything like harmful or even worrisome levels. And, although packaged foods have largely disappeared from convenience stores and some supermarkets, fresh food continues to be widely available. Indeed, there may be too much of it. The chef at the sushi shop where I had lunch on Friday complained that he couldn't sell all the fish he had stock-piled — people were going home early rather than stopping by for a couple of beers and a round of nigiri-zushi before heading for the station.
But this crisis threatens Tokyo's inhabitants in more subtle ways. Unlike the thousands who actually do live close enough to the Fukushima plant that they are already at risk or the hundreds of thousands who will be at risk if the efforts to contain the fallout fail, Tokyo-ites, I believe, fear institutions cracking under stress. While Japan's citizenry have not only performed admirably but in a manner that has evoked something close to awe in much of the world, the country's formal institutions — banks, governments, power companies — have not.
A close friend in Sendai, which did not escape disaster, said this in an e-mail: "We know we are losing our central government or government is losing us." My friend was giving voice to the fears of so many Japanese — not just the hundreds of thousands trapped in and around Sendai but the millions who watch and wait in Tokyo and beyond — that what may buckle in this crisis is not everyday, mundane Japan but Japan's higher circles and institutions, and, above all, its central government.
A formidable intellectual challenge facing all who try to make sense of Japan lies in the seeming contradiction between the continuing strength of everyday Japan and the palpable weakness of the central government. Garbage gets collected; trains run on time; schools graduate literate, numerate, responsible young people; firefighters, police, and medical personnel manage run-of-the-mill emergencies with world-beating efficiency. Yet the county has had six prime ministers in five years and has appeared, since 1991, to lurch from one incoherent policy to another in grappling with the stagnation that set in after the implosion of the so-called bubble economy of the late 1980s.
This conundrum nests inside a larger one: how Japanese organizations work so well most of the time without clear chains of authority or identifiable decision-makers. An organization like Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) — the operator of the stricken Fukushima plant — fields thousands of competent professionals whose dedication to duty, as we have seen in the last few days, literally involves risking their lives. But TEPCO displays many of the same organizational pathologies that BP, Fannie Mae, and Citicorp have made grimly familiar in the United States: arrogance, influence-buying, and an inability to hear anything from outside a self-constructed echo chamber. As Daniel Aldrich has written for TNR, TEPCO has not only never had to explain its enthusiasm for nuclear power, it has devoted considerable resources to ensuring it would never have to.
To be sure, unlike Wall Street's denizens who created America's financial crisis, TEPCO's decision-makers were not prepared to sacrifice every notion of the wider good to personal enrichment. No one at TEPCO took bribes or cut corners in order to line their own pockets. Rather, the corruption — if one can call it that — is more subtle. Because TEPCO's managers confused TEPCO's organizational well-being with Japan's wider good, they lost sight of their real mission: to provide reliable, safe supplies of electric power. It happened because there was no one who could hold them to account, no one who could force them to articulate just how placing nuclear power plants on some of the world's most seismically unstable land helped serve Japan.
Writ large, the tragic flaw in modern Japan's governing setup has been the weakness of institutions that would force Japan's bureaucrats to think through what they are doing and why they are doing it. Ironically, Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) was swept into power back in September 2009 partly because it promised explicitly to address this problem and to place ultimate decision-making authority in the hands of politicians accountable to an electorate rather than with unaccountable bureaucracies such as TEPCO.
Reactionary forces in Japan had, until the earthquake, stymied the DPJ, and, as I argued previously for TNR, Washington has effectively allied itself with these forces. But, while one hesitates during a period of immense suffering to talk of such banalities as silver linings, this catastrophe has made obvious in the clearest possible way that Japan needs robust institutions of accountability. And, while the government has understandably given the impression of being overwhelmed at times by this catastrophe, it is also obvious that its leaders understand this. Kan has called TEPCO's managers on the carpet in a way that can hardly be imagined coming from earlier prime ministers, and his Chief Cabinet Secretary, Yukio Edana, has set an exemplary — and unprecedented for Japan — standard of frankness and clarity in his frequent press conferences.
The Dutch journalist and professor Karel van Wolferen, who first drew the world's attention to the central flaw in Japan's governing setup, writes, "When ... the Japanese business newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun last Friday lamented the shortcomings of current government action, emphasizing the poor lines of command running from responsible politicians to the officials carrying out rescue and supply operations, it reported the truth. But it overlooked crucial historical context. The feebleness of such coordination has been precisely the number one weakness of Japan's political system that the founders of the DPJ set out to overcome." Van Wolferen starts his piece by recalling the 1995 Kobe earthquake, when "the authorities appeared to be washing their hands of the miseries of the victims" and writes that "the contrast (today) could hardly be greater."
Of course, good intentions and a determination to impose accountability on the likes of TEPCO do not in and of themselves deliver food and gasoline to tens of thousands of desperate people — particularly when, as van Wolferen notes, the DPJ has "hardly had any time to build the political infrastructure" neglected by its predecessors. But, in its attempts to alleviate the despair to which my friend in Sendai gave voice, the DPJ is striving mightily to address the fears that Japan's citizens have not only of a nuclear meltdown, but of a meltdown of its higher institutions. And, in doing so, it can tap the self-sacrifice and heroism that its citizenry have displayed amidst the spectacle of whole cities reduced to rubble and hundreds of thousands made homeless.
New Republic: The Meltdown That Japan Really Fears
A Japanese rescue worker stands amongst the debris in Iwate prefecture on Thursday. With the dead or missing toll rising daily and an ongoing crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, Japan is struggling to recover from the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country nearly two weeks ago.
Radiation in Tokyo has not reached anything like harmful or even worrisome levels. And, although packaged foods have largely disappeared from convenience stores and some supermarkets, fresh food continues to be widely available. Indeed, there may be too much of it. The chef at the sushi shop where I had lunch on Friday complained that he couldn't sell all the fish he had stock-piled — people were going home early rather than stopping by for a couple of beers and a round of nigiri-zushi before heading for the station.
But this crisis threatens Tokyo's inhabitants in more subtle ways. Unlike the thousands who actually do live close enough to the Fukushima plant that they are already at risk or the hundreds of thousands who will be at risk if the efforts to contain the fallout fail, Tokyo-ites, I believe, fear institutions cracking under stress. While Japan's citizenry have not only performed admirably but in a manner that has evoked something close to awe in much of the world, the country's formal institutions — banks, governments, power companies — have not.
A close friend in Sendai, which did not escape disaster, said this in an e-mail: "We know we are losing our central government or government is losing us." My friend was giving voice to the fears of so many Japanese — not just the hundreds of thousands trapped in and around Sendai but the millions who watch and wait in Tokyo and beyond — that what may buckle in this crisis is not everyday, mundane Japan but Japan's higher circles and institutions, and, above all, its central government.
A formidable intellectual challenge facing all who try to make sense of Japan lies in the seeming contradiction between the continuing strength of everyday Japan and the palpable weakness of the central government. Garbage gets collected; trains run on time; schools graduate literate, numerate, responsible young people; firefighters, police, and medical personnel manage run-of-the-mill emergencies with world-beating efficiency. Yet the county has had six prime ministers in five years and has appeared, since 1991, to lurch from one incoherent policy to another in grappling with the stagnation that set in after the implosion of the so-called bubble economy of the late 1980s.
This conundrum nests inside a larger one: how Japanese organizations work so well most of the time without clear chains of authority or identifiable decision-makers. An organization like Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) — the operator of the stricken Fukushima plant — fields thousands of competent professionals whose dedication to duty, as we have seen in the last few days, literally involves risking their lives. But TEPCO displays many of the same organizational pathologies that BP, Fannie Mae, and Citicorp have made grimly familiar in the United States: arrogance, influence-buying, and an inability to hear anything from outside a self-constructed echo chamber. As Daniel Aldrich has written for TNR, TEPCO has not only never had to explain its enthusiasm for nuclear power, it has devoted considerable resources to ensuring it would never have to.
To be sure, unlike Wall Street's denizens who created America's financial crisis, TEPCO's decision-makers were not prepared to sacrifice every notion of the wider good to personal enrichment. No one at TEPCO took bribes or cut corners in order to line their own pockets. Rather, the corruption — if one can call it that — is more subtle. Because TEPCO's managers confused TEPCO's organizational well-being with Japan's wider good, they lost sight of their real mission: to provide reliable, safe supplies of electric power. It happened because there was no one who could hold them to account, no one who could force them to articulate just how placing nuclear power plants on some of the world's most seismically unstable land helped serve Japan.
Writ large, the tragic flaw in modern Japan's governing setup has been the weakness of institutions that would force Japan's bureaucrats to think through what they are doing and why they are doing it. Ironically, Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) was swept into power back in September 2009 partly because it promised explicitly to address this problem and to place ultimate decision-making authority in the hands of politicians accountable to an electorate rather than with unaccountable bureaucracies such as TEPCO.
Reactionary forces in Japan had, until the earthquake, stymied the DPJ, and, as I argued previously for TNR, Washington has effectively allied itself with these forces. But, while one hesitates during a period of immense suffering to talk of such banalities as silver linings, this catastrophe has made obvious in the clearest possible way that Japan needs robust institutions of accountability. And, while the government has understandably given the impression of being overwhelmed at times by this catastrophe, it is also obvious that its leaders understand this. Kan has called TEPCO's managers on the carpet in a way that can hardly be imagined coming from earlier prime ministers, and his Chief Cabinet Secretary, Yukio Edana, has set an exemplary — and unprecedented for Japan — standard of frankness and clarity in his frequent press conferences.
The Dutch journalist and professor Karel van Wolferen, who first drew the world's attention to the central flaw in Japan's governing setup, writes, "When ... the Japanese business newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun last Friday lamented the shortcomings of current government action, emphasizing the poor lines of command running from responsible politicians to the officials carrying out rescue and supply operations, it reported the truth. But it overlooked crucial historical context. The feebleness of such coordination has been precisely the number one weakness of Japan's political system that the founders of the DPJ set out to overcome." Van Wolferen starts his piece by recalling the 1995 Kobe earthquake, when "the authorities appeared to be washing their hands of the miseries of the victims" and writes that "the contrast (today) could hardly be greater."
Of course, good intentions and a determination to impose accountability on the likes of TEPCO do not in and of themselves deliver food and gasoline to tens of thousands of desperate people — particularly when, as van Wolferen notes, the DPJ has "hardly had any time to build the political infrastructure" neglected by its predecessors. But, in its attempts to alleviate the despair to which my friend in Sendai gave voice, the DPJ is striving mightily to address the fears that Japan's citizens have not only of a nuclear meltdown, but of a meltdown of its higher institutions. And, in doing so, it can tap the self-sacrifice and heroism that its citizenry have displayed amidst the spectacle of whole cities reduced to rubble and hundreds of thousands made homeless.
tepco engineer should push ahead rather than slowly wait for the best
New Problems at Japanese Plant Subdue Optimism
The tasks include manually draining hundreds of gallons of radioactive water and venting radioactive gas from the pumps and piping of the emergency cooling systems, which are located diagonally underneath the overheated reactor vessels. The urgency of halting the spread of radioactive contamination from the site was underlined on Wednesday by the health warning that infants should not drink tap water — even in Tokyo, 140 miles southwest of the stricken plant — which raised alarms about extensive contamination.
“We’ve got at least 10 days to two weeks of potential drama before you can declare the accident over,” said Michael Friedlander, who worked as a nuclear plant operator for 13 years.
Nuclear engineers have become increasingly concerned about a separate problem that may be putting pressure on the Japanese technicians to work faster: salt buildup inside the reactors, which could cause them to heat up more and, in the worst case, cause the uranium to melt, releasing a range of radioactive material.
Richard T. Lahey Jr., who was General Electric’s chief of safety research for boiling-water reactors when the company installed them at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, said that as seawater was pumped into the reactors and boiled away, it left more and more salt behind.
He estimates that 57,000 pounds of salt have accumulated in Reactor No. 1 and 99,000 pounds apiece in Reactors No. 2 and 3, which are larger.
The big question is how much of that salt is still mixed with water and how much now forms a crust on the uranium fuel rods.
Crusts insulate the rods from the water and allow them to heat up. If the crusts are thick enough, they can block water from circulating between the fuel rods. As the rods heat up, their zirconium cladding can rupture, which releases gaseous radioactive iodine inside and may even cause the uranium to melt and release much more radioactive material.
Some of the salt might be settling to the bottom of the reactor vessel rather than sticking to the fuel rods, however.
The Japanese have reported that some of the seawater used for cooling has returned to the ocean, suggesting that some of the salt may have flowed out again, with some radioactive material. But clearly a significant amount of salt remains.
A Japanese nuclear safety regulator said on Wednesday that plans were under way to fix a piece of equipment that would allow freshwater instead of seawater to be pumped in.
He said that an informal international group of experts on boiling-water reactors was increasingly worried about salt accumulation and was inclined to recommend that the Japanese try to flood each reactor vessel’s containment building with cold water in an effort to prevent the uranium from melting down. That approach might make it harder to release steam from the reactors as part of the “feed-and-bleed” process that was being used to cool them, but that was a risk worth taking, he said.
Public alarm about the crisis increased on Wednesday after officials announced that levels of radioactive iodine had been detected in Tokyo’s tap water.
Recent rains might have washed radioactive particles into the water, as the Japanese government suggested. But prevailing breezes for the past two weeks should have been pushing the radiation mostly out to sea. And until Wednesday, some experts had predicted that radioactive iodine would not be much of a problem, because the fission necessary to produce iodine — which breaks down quickly, with a half-life of just eight days — stopped within minutes of the earthquake on March 11. The fear is that more radiation is being released than has been understood.
Preventing the reactors and storage pools from overheating through radioactive decay would go a long way toward limiting radioactive contamination. But that would require pumping a lot of cold freshwater through them.
The emergency cooling system pump and motor for a boiling-water reactor are roughly the size and height of a compact hatchback car standing on its back bumper. The powerful system has the capacity to propel thousands of gallons of water a minute throughout a reactor pressure vessel and storage pool. But that very power can also be the system’s Achilles’ heel.
The pump and piping are designed to be kept full of water. But they tend to leak and develop alternating pockets of air and water, Mr. Friedlander said.
If the pump is turned on without venting the air and draining the water, the water from the pump would hit the alternating pockets with enough force to blow holes in the piping. Venting the air and draining the water requires a technician to reach a dozen valves, sometimes using a ladder. The water is removed through a hose to the nearest drain, usually in the floor, that leads to machinery designed to remove radiation from the water.
The process takes a full 12 hours in a reactor that is operating normally, Mr. Friedlander said. But even then, the water in the pipes tends to be radioactively contaminated because the valves that separate it from the reactor are not entirely tight.
Backlash from the reactor is likely to be an even bigger problem when the water inside the reactor is much more radioactive than usual and is under extremely high pressure.
Japanese government and power company officials expressed optimism on Wednesday morning that the crisis was close to being brought under control, only to encounter two reminders in the afternoon of the unpredictable difficulties that lie ahead.
Fukushima Daiichi’s Reactor No. 3 began belching black smoke for an hour late in the afternoon, leading its operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, to evacuate workers. A spokeswoman said Thursday that more tests were needed before the company could determine how to proceed in its effort to restore the cooling system.
No. 3 is considered one of the most dangerous of the reactors because of its fuel — mixed oxides, or mox, which contain a mixture of uranium and plutonium and can produce a more dangerous radioactive plume if scattered by fire or explosions.
The spokeswoman said workers would try to repair a pump at Reactor No. 5, which was shut down at the time of the quake and has shown few problems. The pump abruptly stopped working Wednesday afternoon.
New Problems at Japanese Plant Subdue Optimism
The tasks include manually draining hundreds of gallons of radioactive water and venting radioactive gas from the pumps and piping of the emergency cooling systems, which are located diagonally underneath the overheated reactor vessels. The urgency of halting the spread of radioactive contamination from the site was underlined on Wednesday by the health warning that infants should not drink tap water — even in Tokyo, 140 miles southwest of the stricken plant — which raised alarms about extensive contamination.
“We’ve got at least 10 days to two weeks of potential drama before you can declare the accident over,” said Michael Friedlander, who worked as a nuclear plant operator for 13 years.
Nuclear engineers have become increasingly concerned about a separate problem that may be putting pressure on the Japanese technicians to work faster: salt buildup inside the reactors, which could cause them to heat up more and, in the worst case, cause the uranium to melt, releasing a range of radioactive material.
Richard T. Lahey Jr., who was General Electric’s chief of safety research for boiling-water reactors when the company installed them at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, said that as seawater was pumped into the reactors and boiled away, it left more and more salt behind.
He estimates that 57,000 pounds of salt have accumulated in Reactor No. 1 and 99,000 pounds apiece in Reactors No. 2 and 3, which are larger.
The big question is how much of that salt is still mixed with water and how much now forms a crust on the uranium fuel rods.
Crusts insulate the rods from the water and allow them to heat up. If the crusts are thick enough, they can block water from circulating between the fuel rods. As the rods heat up, their zirconium cladding can rupture, which releases gaseous radioactive iodine inside and may even cause the uranium to melt and release much more radioactive material.
Some of the salt might be settling to the bottom of the reactor vessel rather than sticking to the fuel rods, however.
The Japanese have reported that some of the seawater used for cooling has returned to the ocean, suggesting that some of the salt may have flowed out again, with some radioactive material. But clearly a significant amount of salt remains.
A Japanese nuclear safety regulator said on Wednesday that plans were under way to fix a piece of equipment that would allow freshwater instead of seawater to be pumped in.
He said that an informal international group of experts on boiling-water reactors was increasingly worried about salt accumulation and was inclined to recommend that the Japanese try to flood each reactor vessel’s containment building with cold water in an effort to prevent the uranium from melting down. That approach might make it harder to release steam from the reactors as part of the “feed-and-bleed” process that was being used to cool them, but that was a risk worth taking, he said.
Public alarm about the crisis increased on Wednesday after officials announced that levels of radioactive iodine had been detected in Tokyo’s tap water.
Recent rains might have washed radioactive particles into the water, as the Japanese government suggested. But prevailing breezes for the past two weeks should have been pushing the radiation mostly out to sea. And until Wednesday, some experts had predicted that radioactive iodine would not be much of a problem, because the fission necessary to produce iodine — which breaks down quickly, with a half-life of just eight days — stopped within minutes of the earthquake on March 11. The fear is that more radiation is being released than has been understood.
Preventing the reactors and storage pools from overheating through radioactive decay would go a long way toward limiting radioactive contamination. But that would require pumping a lot of cold freshwater through them.
The emergency cooling system pump and motor for a boiling-water reactor are roughly the size and height of a compact hatchback car standing on its back bumper. The powerful system has the capacity to propel thousands of gallons of water a minute throughout a reactor pressure vessel and storage pool. But that very power can also be the system’s Achilles’ heel.
The pump and piping are designed to be kept full of water. But they tend to leak and develop alternating pockets of air and water, Mr. Friedlander said.
If the pump is turned on without venting the air and draining the water, the water from the pump would hit the alternating pockets with enough force to blow holes in the piping. Venting the air and draining the water requires a technician to reach a dozen valves, sometimes using a ladder. The water is removed through a hose to the nearest drain, usually in the floor, that leads to machinery designed to remove radiation from the water.
The process takes a full 12 hours in a reactor that is operating normally, Mr. Friedlander said. But even then, the water in the pipes tends to be radioactively contaminated because the valves that separate it from the reactor are not entirely tight.
Backlash from the reactor is likely to be an even bigger problem when the water inside the reactor is much more radioactive than usual and is under extremely high pressure.
Japanese government and power company officials expressed optimism on Wednesday morning that the crisis was close to being brought under control, only to encounter two reminders in the afternoon of the unpredictable difficulties that lie ahead.
Fukushima Daiichi’s Reactor No. 3 began belching black smoke for an hour late in the afternoon, leading its operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, to evacuate workers. A spokeswoman said Thursday that more tests were needed before the company could determine how to proceed in its effort to restore the cooling system.
No. 3 is considered one of the most dangerous of the reactors because of its fuel — mixed oxides, or mox, which contain a mixture of uranium and plutonium and can produce a more dangerous radioactive plume if scattered by fire or explosions.
The spokeswoman said workers would try to repair a pump at Reactor No. 5, which was shut down at the time of the quake and has shown few problems. The pump abruptly stopped working Wednesday afternoon.
it is better he stay in shelter, the leak is getting worse. send in usa.
Evacuee obeys call to help out at N-plant
The Yomiuri Shimbun
He was taking shelter at an evacuation center with his family when the call came, but this worker at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant could not say "no."
An employee of a company subcontracted by the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., the man was asked to help bring reactors at the earthquake- and tsunami-hit power plant under control, he told The Yomiuri Shimbun.
When the magnitude-9.0 temblor struck on March 11, he was in an office at the power plant. After an evacuation order was issued for the area where he lived, he and his family headed to a temporary shelter in Fukushima.
But he did not stay there long. His company called him and said he was needed at the stricken plant from last Thursday to Saturday.
His main task was to cool the temporary storage pools for spent nuclear fuel rods at Nos. 5 and 6 reactors by restoring the pool's cooling system. He was just 50 to 60 meters away from the reactor buildings when he helped pump seawater into the cooling system.
Normally staff in this area would wear regular work outfits. This time, however, the man was covered from top to toe in full protective gear, and carried a radiation meter at all times. After working for four to five hours, the level of radiation detected on his body was higher than the amount he received during his normal work in the reactor building. "That was scary," he said.
The building was surrounded by debris and cars that had been flipped over and tossed about by the tsunami. Steel scaffolding pipes were scattered all around.
"It brought home the terror of a tsunami," he said. "I'd never seen anything like that before. It was as if I'd come to the wrong place."
The man, who is in his 50s, has worked at nuclear power plants around the country for about 30 years.
At the evacuation shelter, he had seen pictures on TV of Nos. 1 and 3 reactors after they were damaged by hydrogen explosions. Those startling images preyed on his mind as did the thought of the radioactive particles being leaked into the atmosphere.
"You can't see radiation. The thought that the reactors were out of control was frightening," he recalled.
However, the man had to relegate those thoughts to the back of his mind. "I had a mission--to lower the temperature of the storage pool," he said.
When he had finished his operation, he ran his hands along the hose that had pumped up the water. He could still feel the water running inside it.
News then came that the pool's temperature had dropped. "I was relieved that I'd been able to complete my job," the man said.
Although the man had to focus on his job as the nation and the world watched the efforts to bring the nuclear power plant under control, once he had finished, his mind turned to more private worries: "When will I be able to return home?" and "How bad is the radiation contamination in my neighborhood?"
He expects to stay at the evacuation center for some time.
(Mar. 24, 2011)
Evacuee obeys call to help out at N-plant
The Yomiuri Shimbun
He was taking shelter at an evacuation center with his family when the call came, but this worker at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant could not say "no."
An employee of a company subcontracted by the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., the man was asked to help bring reactors at the earthquake- and tsunami-hit power plant under control, he told The Yomiuri Shimbun.
When the magnitude-9.0 temblor struck on March 11, he was in an office at the power plant. After an evacuation order was issued for the area where he lived, he and his family headed to a temporary shelter in Fukushima.
But he did not stay there long. His company called him and said he was needed at the stricken plant from last Thursday to Saturday.
His main task was to cool the temporary storage pools for spent nuclear fuel rods at Nos. 5 and 6 reactors by restoring the pool's cooling system. He was just 50 to 60 meters away from the reactor buildings when he helped pump seawater into the cooling system.
Normally staff in this area would wear regular work outfits. This time, however, the man was covered from top to toe in full protective gear, and carried a radiation meter at all times. After working for four to five hours, the level of radiation detected on his body was higher than the amount he received during his normal work in the reactor building. "That was scary," he said.
The building was surrounded by debris and cars that had been flipped over and tossed about by the tsunami. Steel scaffolding pipes were scattered all around.
"It brought home the terror of a tsunami," he said. "I'd never seen anything like that before. It was as if I'd come to the wrong place."
The man, who is in his 50s, has worked at nuclear power plants around the country for about 30 years.
At the evacuation shelter, he had seen pictures on TV of Nos. 1 and 3 reactors after they were damaged by hydrogen explosions. Those startling images preyed on his mind as did the thought of the radioactive particles being leaked into the atmosphere.
"You can't see radiation. The thought that the reactors were out of control was frightening," he recalled.
However, the man had to relegate those thoughts to the back of his mind. "I had a mission--to lower the temperature of the storage pool," he said.
When he had finished his operation, he ran his hands along the hose that had pumped up the water. He could still feel the water running inside it.
News then came that the pool's temperature had dropped. "I was relieved that I'd been able to complete my job," the man said.
Although the man had to focus on his job as the nation and the world watched the efforts to bring the nuclear power plant under control, once he had finished, his mind turned to more private worries: "When will I be able to return home?" and "How bad is the radiation contamination in my neighborhood?"
He expects to stay at the evacuation center for some time.
(Mar. 24, 2011)
Re: it is better he stay in shelter, the leak is getting worse. send in usa.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="1024" height="768" src="http://photo.sankei.jp.msn.com/panorama/data/2011/0321kamaishi_3/~/media/panorama/2011/0321kamaishi_3/110321kamaishi03.swf" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
kamaishi Panorama
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="1024" height="768" src="http://photo.sankei.jp.msn.com/panorama/data/2011/0321kamaishi_3/~/media/panorama/2011/0321kamaishi_3/110321kamaishi03.swf" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
kamaishi Panorama
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="1024" height="768" src="http://photo.sankei.jp.msn.com/panorama/data/2011/0324ookawa01/~/media/panorama/2011/0324ookawa01/110324ookawa-elementary01.swf" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Ookawa elementary school Panorama
Ookawa elementary school Panorama
<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="1024" height="768" src="http://photo.sankei.jp.msn.com/panorama/data/2011/0324ookawa02/~/media/panorama/2011/0324ookawa02/110324ookawa-elementary02.swf" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Ookawa elementary school Miyagi Prefecture Japan Panorama
Ookawa elementary school Miyagi Prefecture Japan Panorama
Police and family members carry the coffin of Masaichi Oyama, who was killed by the tsunami, during a cremation ceremony March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan.
A Japanese priest recites prayers over the coffins of Tsune Oyama and Masaichi Oyama, both killed by the tsunami, during a cremation ceremony March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan.
Family members pray over the coffins of Tsune Oyama and Masaichi Oyama, both killed by the tsunami, during a cremation ceremony March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan. The family lost three family members from the earthquake and tsunami.
Family members grieve over the coffins of Tsune Oyama and Masaichi Oyama during a cremation, they were both killed by the tsunami, on March 24, 2011 in Kurihara, Japan.
A crematorium worker gets ready to close the door with the coffin of Katsuko Oyama, who was, killed by the tsunami into the oven during a cremation March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan.
Family members and relatives prepare to transfer the bones of Masaichi Oyama, killed by the tsunami, into an urn from the body during a cremation March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan.
Family members and relatives transfer the bones of Masaichi Oyama, who was killed by the tsunami, by chopsticks into an urn the during a cremation ceremony March 24, 2011 in Kurihara , Japan. The family lost three family members from the earthquake and tsunami. Under Japanese Buddhist practice, a cremation is the expected traditional way of dealing with the dead, but now with the death toll so high, crematoriums are overwhelmed and there is a shortage of fuel to burn them. Local municipalities are forced to dig mass graves as a temporary solution.
Japan's leader calls situation 'grave' at nuclear plant where dangerous breach suspected
Published on March 25, 2011
TOKYO - A suspected breach in the core of a reactor at the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant could mean more serious radioactive contamination, Japanese officials revealed Friday, as the prime minister called the country's ongoing fight to stabilize the plant "very grave and serious."
A sombre Prime Minister Naoto Kan sounded a pessimistic note at a briefing hours after nuclear safety officials announced what could be a major setback in the urgent mission to stop the plant from leaking radiation, two weeks after a devastating earthquake and tsunami disabled it.
"The situation today at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant is still very grave and serious. We must remain vigilant," Kan said. "We are not in a position where we can be optimistic. We must treat every development with the utmost care."
The uncertain situation halted work at the nuclear complex, where dozens had been trying feverishly to stop the overheated plant from leaking dangerous radiation. The plant has leaked some low levels of radiation, but a breach could mean a much larger release of contaminants.
The possible breach in Unit 3 might be a crack or a hole in the stainless steel chamber of the reactor core or in the spent fuel pool that's lined with several feet of reinforced concrete. The temperature and pressure inside the core, which holds the fuel rods, remained stable and was far lower than would further melt the core.
Suspicions of a possible breach were raised when two workers waded into water 10,000 times more radioactive than levels normally found in water in or around a reactor and suffered skin burns, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said.
Kan apologized to farmers and business owners for the toll the radiation has had on their livelihoods: Several countries have halted some food imports from areas near the plant after milk and produce were found to contain elevated levels of radiation.
He also thanked utility workers, firefighters and military personnel for "risking their lives" to cool the overheated facility.
The alarm Friday comes two weeks to the day since the magnitude-9 quake triggered a tsunami that enveloped cities along the northeastern coast and knocked out the Fukushima reactor's cooling systems.
Police said the official death toll jumped past 10,000 on Friday. With the cleanup and recovery operations continuing and more than 17,400 listed as missing, the final number of dead was expected to surpass 18,000.
The nuclear crisis has compounded the challenges faced by a nation already saddled with a humanitarian disaster. Much of the frigid northeast remains a scene of despair and devastation, with Japan struggling to feed and house hundreds of thousands of homeless survivors, clear away debris and bury the dead.
A breach could mean a leak has been seeping for days, likely since the hydrogen explosion at Unit 3 on March 14. It's not clear if any of the contaminated water has run into the ground. Radiation readings for the air were not yet available for Friday, but detections in recent days have shown no significant spike.
But elevated levels of radiation have already turned up in raw milk, seawater and 11 kinds of vegetables, including broccoli, cauliflower and turnips. Tap water in several areas of Japan — including Tokyo — also showed radiation levels considered unsafe for infants, who are particularly vulnerable to cancer-causing radioactive iodine, officials said.
The scare caused a run on bottled water in the capital, and Tokyo municipal officials are distributing it to families with babies.
Previous radioactive emissions have come from intentional efforts to vent small amounts of steam through valves to prevent the core from bursting. However, releases from a breach could allow uncontrolled quantities of radioactive contaminants to escape into the surrounding ground or air.
Government spokesman Yukio Edano said "safety measures may not be adequate" and warned that may contribute to rising anxiety among people about how the disaster is being managed.
"We have to make sure that safety is secured for the people working in that area. We truly believe that is incumbent upon us," the chief Cabinet secretary told reporters.
Edano said people living 12 to 20 miles (20 to 30 kilometres) from the plant should still be safe from the radiation as long as they stay indoors. But since supplies are not being delivered to the area fast enough, he said it may be better for residents in the area to voluntarily evacuate to places with better facilities.
"If the current situation is protracted and worsens, then we will not deny the possibility of (mandatory) evacuation," he said.
NISA spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama said later that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. was issued a "very strong warning" for safety violations and that a thorough review would be conducted once the situation stabilizes.
Meanwhile, damage to factories was taking its toll on the world's third-largest economy and creating a ripple effect felt worldwide.
Nissan Motor Co. said it may move part of its engine production line to the United States because of damage to a plant.
The quake and tsunami are emerging as the world's most expensive natural disasters on record, wreaking up to $310 billion in damages, the government said.
"There is no doubt that we have immense economic and financial damage," Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said. "It will be our task how to recover from the damage."
At Sendai's port, brand new Toyota cars lay crushed in piles. At the airport, flooded by the tsunami on March 11, U.S. Marines used bulldozers and shovels to shift wrecked cars that lay scattered like discarded toys.
Still, there were examples of resilience, patience and fortitude across the region.
In Soma, a hard-hit town along the Fukushima prefecture coast, rubble covered the block where Hiroshi Suzuki's home once stood. He watched as soldiers dug into mounds of timber had been neighbours' homes in search of bodies. Just three bodies have been pulled out.
"I never expected to have to live through anything like this," he said mournfully. Suzuki is one of Soma's lucky residents, but the tsunami washed away the shop where he sold fish and seaweed.
"My business is gone. I don't think I will ever be able to recover," said Suzuki, 59.
Still, he managed to find a bright side. "The one good thing is the way everyone is pulling together and helping each other. No one is stealing or looting," he said.
"It makes me feel proud to be Japanese."
Published on March 25, 2011
TOKYO - A suspected breach in the core of a reactor at the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant could mean more serious radioactive contamination, Japanese officials revealed Friday, as the prime minister called the country's ongoing fight to stabilize the plant "very grave and serious."
A sombre Prime Minister Naoto Kan sounded a pessimistic note at a briefing hours after nuclear safety officials announced what could be a major setback in the urgent mission to stop the plant from leaking radiation, two weeks after a devastating earthquake and tsunami disabled it.
"The situation today at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant is still very grave and serious. We must remain vigilant," Kan said. "We are not in a position where we can be optimistic. We must treat every development with the utmost care."
The uncertain situation halted work at the nuclear complex, where dozens had been trying feverishly to stop the overheated plant from leaking dangerous radiation. The plant has leaked some low levels of radiation, but a breach could mean a much larger release of contaminants.
The possible breach in Unit 3 might be a crack or a hole in the stainless steel chamber of the reactor core or in the spent fuel pool that's lined with several feet of reinforced concrete. The temperature and pressure inside the core, which holds the fuel rods, remained stable and was far lower than would further melt the core.
Suspicions of a possible breach were raised when two workers waded into water 10,000 times more radioactive than levels normally found in water in or around a reactor and suffered skin burns, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said.
Kan apologized to farmers and business owners for the toll the radiation has had on their livelihoods: Several countries have halted some food imports from areas near the plant after milk and produce were found to contain elevated levels of radiation.
He also thanked utility workers, firefighters and military personnel for "risking their lives" to cool the overheated facility.
The alarm Friday comes two weeks to the day since the magnitude-9 quake triggered a tsunami that enveloped cities along the northeastern coast and knocked out the Fukushima reactor's cooling systems.
Police said the official death toll jumped past 10,000 on Friday. With the cleanup and recovery operations continuing and more than 17,400 listed as missing, the final number of dead was expected to surpass 18,000.
The nuclear crisis has compounded the challenges faced by a nation already saddled with a humanitarian disaster. Much of the frigid northeast remains a scene of despair and devastation, with Japan struggling to feed and house hundreds of thousands of homeless survivors, clear away debris and bury the dead.
A breach could mean a leak has been seeping for days, likely since the hydrogen explosion at Unit 3 on March 14. It's not clear if any of the contaminated water has run into the ground. Radiation readings for the air were not yet available for Friday, but detections in recent days have shown no significant spike.
But elevated levels of radiation have already turned up in raw milk, seawater and 11 kinds of vegetables, including broccoli, cauliflower and turnips. Tap water in several areas of Japan — including Tokyo — also showed radiation levels considered unsafe for infants, who are particularly vulnerable to cancer-causing radioactive iodine, officials said.
The scare caused a run on bottled water in the capital, and Tokyo municipal officials are distributing it to families with babies.
Previous radioactive emissions have come from intentional efforts to vent small amounts of steam through valves to prevent the core from bursting. However, releases from a breach could allow uncontrolled quantities of radioactive contaminants to escape into the surrounding ground or air.
Government spokesman Yukio Edano said "safety measures may not be adequate" and warned that may contribute to rising anxiety among people about how the disaster is being managed.
"We have to make sure that safety is secured for the people working in that area. We truly believe that is incumbent upon us," the chief Cabinet secretary told reporters.
Edano said people living 12 to 20 miles (20 to 30 kilometres) from the plant should still be safe from the radiation as long as they stay indoors. But since supplies are not being delivered to the area fast enough, he said it may be better for residents in the area to voluntarily evacuate to places with better facilities.
"If the current situation is protracted and worsens, then we will not deny the possibility of (mandatory) evacuation," he said.
NISA spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama said later that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. was issued a "very strong warning" for safety violations and that a thorough review would be conducted once the situation stabilizes.
Meanwhile, damage to factories was taking its toll on the world's third-largest economy and creating a ripple effect felt worldwide.
Nissan Motor Co. said it may move part of its engine production line to the United States because of damage to a plant.
The quake and tsunami are emerging as the world's most expensive natural disasters on record, wreaking up to $310 billion in damages, the government said.
"There is no doubt that we have immense economic and financial damage," Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said. "It will be our task how to recover from the damage."
At Sendai's port, brand new Toyota cars lay crushed in piles. At the airport, flooded by the tsunami on March 11, U.S. Marines used bulldozers and shovels to shift wrecked cars that lay scattered like discarded toys.
Still, there were examples of resilience, patience and fortitude across the region.
In Soma, a hard-hit town along the Fukushima prefecture coast, rubble covered the block where Hiroshi Suzuki's home once stood. He watched as soldiers dug into mounds of timber had been neighbours' homes in search of bodies. Just three bodies have been pulled out.
"I never expected to have to live through anything like this," he said mournfully. Suzuki is one of Soma's lucky residents, but the tsunami washed away the shop where he sold fish and seaweed.
"My business is gone. I don't think I will ever be able to recover," said Suzuki, 59.
Still, he managed to find a bright side. "The one good thing is the way everyone is pulling together and helping each other. No one is stealing or looting," he said.
"It makes me feel proud to be Japanese."
Similar threads
