Japan battles to contain crisis at nuclear plant
• Radiation hits harmful levels at Fukushima plant • Prime minister urges public to remain calm • Struggle to supply food, fuel, water and medicine Fears of a catastrophe at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan escalated following a third explosion and a fire in another reactor that caused radiation to rise to harmful levels. Fifty to 70 technicians were left to struggle with the possible breach of the containment vessel in reactor No 2, where meltdown is feared. All but non-essential staff were ordered away from the plant. That blast is thought to be the most serious yet because it may have damaged the crucial containment vessel that surrounds the nuclear core and prevents radiation from leaking out. Any damage to the reactor’s steel containment system caused by the explosion increases the risk that radiation will be released from the core, though IAEA officials said the damage is minor and there appeared to be no immediate danger of radiation escaping. The explosion was followed by a fire at a storage pond at reactor 4, where spent fuel rods were being cooled. Although the fire was extinguished, officials were concerned that the pool could boil dry and expose fuel rods to the atmosphere. The fire led to a brief spike in radiation that reached a dose known to be dangerous to health, although levels dropped substantially later in the day. While the disaster has become the biggest nuclear accident since Chernobyl and one that is more serious than Three Mile Island, experts stressed that even the worst-case scenario would still be on a fraction of the scale of the 1986 disaster in the Ukraine. Japan’s prime minister, Naoto Kan, urged the public to remain calm in a televised address, but ordered anyone still within the 13-mile (20km) exclusion zone to leave immediately, and the 140,000 residents within 19 miles to stay indoors. Officials said that health risks to anyone further than 13 miles from the plant were minimal, but the escalating problems have diminished public confidence. Survivors within the disaster zone expressed distrust in officials and the power station’s operators. Several airlines cancelled services to Tokyo, and flights out of Japan quickly sold out as foreigners fled the country. The prime minister, already embattled before the disaster, is under pressure over his handling of the crisis, particularly over the way the nuclear situation has spiralled despite reassurances from officials. The struggle to ensure supplies of food, water, fuel and medicine to an area stricken by Friday’s earthquake and tsunami left the government facing battles on two fronts. The number confirmed dead or missing by police rose above 10,000, Japan’s largest death toll in a natural disaster since the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923, Kyodo news agency said. Forecasters have warned that temperatures are dropping to mid-winter levels across the disaster zone, with snow predicted in several areas. Half a million people have been displaced by the disaster and evacuation from the nuclear zone, with Save the Children saying 100,000 children are affected. Shelters and hospitals are running low on fuel and blankets. In Ishinomaki, Patrick Fuller of the International Federation of Red Cross said: “The tsunami engulfed half the town and many lie shivering uncontrollably under blankets. They are suffering from hypothermia having been stranded in their homes without water or electricity.” The Chinese government said last night it was organising a mass evacuation of its citizens from the north-east of Japan. Tokyo was shaken by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake , but it was not immediately clear if it was an aftershock. It was centred in Shizuoka prefecture, hundreds of miles south-west of the capital and inland. It was not immediately clear if it was related to last Friday’s tremor. . Japan earthquake and tsunami Natural disasters and extreme weather Japan Nuclear power Energy Utilities Tania Branigan guardian.co.uk
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Japan battles to contain crisis at nuclear plant
• Radiation hits harmful levels at Fukushima plant • Prime minister urges public to remain calm • Struggle to supply food, fuel, water and medicine Fears of a catastrophe at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan escalated following a third explosion and a fire in another reactor that caused radiation to rise to harmful levels. Fifty to 70 technicians were left to struggle with the possible breach of the containment vessel in reactor No 2, where meltdown is feared. All but non-essential staff were ordered away from the plant. That blast is thought to be the most serious yet because it may have damaged the crucial containment vessel that surrounds the nuclear core and prevents radiation from leaking out. Any damage to the reactor’s steel containment system caused by the explosion increases the risk that radiation will be released from the core, though IAEA officials said the damage is minor and there appeared to be no immediate danger of radiation escaping. The explosion was followed by a fire at a storage pond at reactor 4, where spent fuel rods were being cooled. Although the fire was extinguished, officials were concerned that the pool could boil dry and expose fuel rods to the atmosphere. The fire led to a brief spike in radiation that reached a dose known to be dangerous to health, although levels dropped substantially later in the day. While the disaster has become the biggest nuclear accident since Chernobyl and one that is more serious than Three Mile Island, experts stressed that even the worst-case scenario would still be on a fraction of the scale of the 1986 disaster in the Ukraine. Japan’s prime minister, Naoto Kan, urged the public to remain calm in a televised address, but ordered anyone still within the 13-mile (20km) exclusion zone to leave immediately, and the 140,000 residents within 19 miles to stay indoors. Officials said that health risks to anyone further than 13 miles from the plant were minimal, but the escalating problems have diminished public confidence. Survivors within the disaster zone expressed distrust in officials and the power station’s operators. Several airlines cancelled services to Tokyo, and flights out of Japan quickly sold out as foreigners fled the country. The prime minister, already embattled before the disaster, is under pressure over his handling of the crisis, particularly over the way the nuclear situation has spiralled despite reassurances from officials. The struggle to ensure supplies of food, water, fuel and medicine to an area stricken by Friday’s earthquake and tsunami left the government facing battles on two fronts. The number confirmed dead or missing by police rose above 10,000, Japan’s largest death toll in a natural disaster since the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923, Kyodo news agency said. Forecasters have warned that temperatures are dropping to mid-winter levels across the disaster zone, with snow predicted in several areas. Half a million people have been displaced by the disaster and evacuation from the nuclear zone, with Save the Children saying 100,000 children are affected. Shelters and hospitals are running low on fuel and blankets. In Ishinomaki, Patrick Fuller of the International Federation of Red Cross said: “The tsunami engulfed half the town and many lie shivering uncontrollably under blankets. They are suffering from hypothermia having been stranded in their homes without water or electricity.” The Chinese government said last night it was organising a mass evacuation of its citizens from the north-east of Japan. Tokyo was shaken by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake , but it was not immediately clear if it was an aftershock. It was centred in Shizuoka prefecture, hundreds of miles south-west of the capital and inland. It was not immediately clear if it was related to last Friday’s tremor. . Japan earthquake and tsunami Natural disasters and extreme weather Japan Nuclear power Energy Utilities Tania Branigan guardian.co.uk
Posted by
on March 15, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News.
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You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.