Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Day 19 Japan Disaster


As week 3 of the Japan Disaster unfolds, there are over 500,000 still in shelters, this includes the radiation evacuees.
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Japanese have much to cope with still...extensive losses of homes and life due to the Tusnami and the quake especially along the coast, and the growing nuclear disaster...
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ENIGMA NOTE::: For the most part I have been posting information, research on FB and on Twitter during the past 18 days. I will be honest, the situation has been very fluid, and for the first time blogging or tracking any Disaster, I have been overwhelmed, just trying to keep up on reading and sharing resources.In many years of tracking and blogging disasters, it is one thing to try to document and share information on a Humanitarian disaster, but this is my first time covering a Nuclear disaster, so please know I am trying to locate timely accurate information. So most of the detailed data has been consistently posted on Twitter. I am grateful that I have studied radioactive waste and fallout for 10 years, but saddened to now blog on it... My Handle there on Twitter is @watergatesummer, so I encourage you follow me there. For now I will try to post Once/Day updates here.
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Photo above is back view of Smoking Steaming Fukushima Reactors. As this crisis has deepened, it is apparent that 4 of the 6 Reactors are in Continuing Critical Condition, with rising concerns about the Core Safety as well as Spent Fuel Rods exposure. Timely accurate data has been difficult to obtain due to transparency issues , especially with TEPCO. It is day 19 and 17 US States have reported some fallout data from this disaster, and many are concerned for our country and Japan. America has sent teams to Japan and our Navy has been trying to help them as well. As of today Japan's government is seeking outside expertise and help as this situation has reached dire proportions. Even in Japan people there have been worried their own government was not telling them enough. ( The government has been coping with 500,000 in shelters and much damage due to the 9,0 Quake and the Tsunami as well as rescue and recovery missions,but the nuclear disaster has unfolded with transparency issues for those there as well as here). At this point there are questions as to the true conditions at the plant, especially regarding the Mistreatment of the Workers that has come to light in past 24 hours and concerning soil and sea water samples. As well as continuing questions regarding the actual damage, including Core Damage, and condition of all the Fuel Rods especially in Reactors 1 through 4.
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From abc,net -down under media source, please do read the latest as of 3.30.11.
See Snippet Below:
"As Japan works to contain the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986, the level of radioactive iodine in the sea off the stricken nuclear plant has reached its highest reading yet - more than 3,300 times the legal limit.The Japan government is now considering plans to drape shattered nuclear reactor buildings with special covers to limit radiation and pump contaminated water into a tanker.

The embattled nation is also inviting foreign experts to help stabilise the overheating Fukushima station.The United States has lent Japan robots that can crawl through, film and clear rubble in the blast-hit reactor buildings which humans cannot enter because of high radiation.And France, which relies on nuclear power for three-quarters of its domestic energy needs, was sending an expert team from Areva, its state-run reactor maker, to assist TEPCO.An official with Japan's nuclear safety agency said it was time to think outside the box.

"We are in an unprecedented situation, so we need to think about different strategies beyond what we normally think about," the official said."
( And yes article explains that a Dome or Tarp is being looked at to cover dispersing reactors, this idea is being looked at as air samplings and soil samplings from outside evac zone raise concern).
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As this Crisis unfolds the word "Meltdown" needs to better explained in nuclear terms, ABCnews of Australia has article explaining the concerns and visuals of a meltdown, that helps explain it in clear terms.
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More questions and concerns about what is leaking from Plant. (Sydney Morning Herald)
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More explaining the Reactor Damage
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WSJ.com - Inside the Reactors
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Improve living conditions for the brave Fukushima nuclear workers CNN reports that the workers at the plant are lacking food, water, Showers, and medical care and are sleeping in stairwells and being poorly treated. There is no reason that TEPCO should not be providing them with better care and safety gear. It is deplorable. Many stayed even knowing that they had lost homes and family. Many of the part time workers were threatened with being fired if they did not stay. 3 were contaminated by Radioactive water with burns to their legs due to lack of proper boots. And in last 24 hours 3 more were contaminatd again with the contaminated water. ( For some reason the decision was made to NOT hospitalize them to provide them care)
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3 Types Plutonium have shown up in Soils near Fukushima Plant
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#CRITICAL #NISA (nukesafety) Update on ALL reactors Fukushima ||NOTE #1-#4 ESP.re.SpentFuelPonds temps??
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Concerns raised in the Hawaii Daily.....
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(Via Japantimes )
Greenpeace finds high levels of radiation outside no-go zone around Fukushima nuclear plant

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NY Times: heat from fuel rods in crippled #Fukushima reactors evaporate 200 tons of water/day
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Kyoto News:: Woes deepen over radioactive water at nuke plant, sea contamination http://goo.gl/QZMM2
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Seawater Radiation Level Soars Near Plant (Wall Street Journal)
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Berkeley providing water and air sampling data: EPA will need more sampling stations, and maybe universities can aid with this...17 states have tested for fallout already.
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Japan Raises Possibility of Breach in Reactor Vessel citing #3 reactor vessel may be damaged? And that evacuation zone needs to be expanded.

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2 comments:

tom said...

And now they find plutonium, and think there is a core breach, still the experts say no worries here I think it's time for a shot of Irish Whiskey

enigma4ever said...

ahhh I think you are right Tom....I will take a bit of Jamisons...neat thank you...

NOW...about the Situation in Japan....give the japanese govt and TEPCO 48 more hours....( as the molten mess smolders I am sure that we will be told that it is a tolerable dose....)

it is horrendous...the worst thing I have ever blogged...
tracked or tweeted...( and I am sure I said that last summer about BP"s gulf mess...I stand corrected...)

thanks for coming by...and yes I will track blog this awful mess...because there are lessons in this....and sadly Japan really reminds me of the Puget sound of the NW.....

take care