As for Angle of Death’s Next Nuke Choices…

Fukushima operator given green light to restart nuclear reactors!!

The mindless nuclear regulators in Japan, a part of the global nuclear mafia, have given the operator of Japan’s crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (TEPCO), initial approval to restart two reactors, just six years after the March 2011 triple meltdown, and despite the fact that TEPCO is still struggling to decommission other rectors.

Five tiny men, acting as Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) commissioners, have voted unanimously to approve the restarts at reactors No 6 and No 7, each with a capacity of 1,356 megawatts, at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, said to be the world’s largest NPP.

Greenpeace Germany has correctly accused the NRA of recklessness.

“It is the same disregard for nuclear risks that resulted in Tepco’s 2011 triple reactor meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi site. Approving the safety of reactors at the world’s largest nuclear plant when it is at extreme risk from major earthquakes completely exposes the weakness of Japan’s nuclear regulator,” said a senior nuclear specialist with the organization.

Some 23 seismic faultlines run through the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa site, Greenpeace said.

The Japan Centre for Economic Research estimates the total cost of the Fukushima cleanup, which is expected to take up to 40 years,  to reach 70tn yen (~ $620bn).

‘Fukushima Catastrophe Ongoing: Leakage continues on a daily basis’

Radiation at Fukushima rising to highest level since 2011 meltdown

“[…] recent measurements showing 53,000 Rem per hour (deadly to humans within a minute or less, at close range, in the absence of radiation shielding), or higher, radiation dose rates in the melted down Unit 2 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi, Japan.”

Emergency storage tanks contain “800,000 tons of highly radioactive water … because every day they pour a hundred tons of water on each of these three melted down cores and sometimes they lose those tanks. They leak, they overflow, so it is an ongoing catastrophe,” says Kevin Kamps, radioactive waste monitor at Beyond Nuclear,

“There are many shoes that could still drop at Fukushima Daiichi. One of the ones is the high radioactive waste storage pools that aren’t even inside radiological containment. They don’t have all of that spent nuclear fuel transferred to a safer location in a couple of the units still. If something were to go wrong with that – those would be open air releases of very high-level radioactivity.

“The prime minister at the time the catastrophe began, Kan, had a contingency plan to evacuate all of Northeast Japan – up to 50 million people. It was predominantly because of those storage pools. We’re still in that predicament- if one of those pools were to go up in flames. As Tokyo plans to host the 2020 Olympics and bring in many millions of extra people into this already densely populated area –it is not a good idea.”

More information is available at:

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/japan/2017/2/6/fukushima-catastrophe-ongoing-leakage-on-a-daily-basis.html

See also previous blog entries on Fukushima catastrophe.

Nuclear fuel debris possibly found at Fukushima Daiichi NPP

• CJ Members
• EAC
• OC Teams

Decommissioning of crippled Fukushima NPP hits new snag

Workers have found a black mass, most likely Nuclear fuel debris, below the containment vessel at Fukushima Daiichi reactor No. 2  left over since the 2011 meltdown disaster, plant operator Tepco said today.

• Details are available from FIRE-EARTH PULSARS.

 

1.1 Tons of Radioactive Water Leaks from Fukushima

NOTE: Many of the links posted below have previously been blocked or buried by Google, WordPress and others.

SNAFU IN JAPAN
CRIMINAL INCOMPETENCE AT FUKUSHIMA
“COSMIC-LEVEL” RADIATION LEAKS
ENVIRONMENTAL HOLOCAUST
CRIMES AGAINST NATURE
.

Massive leak occurs in a treatment system at Fukushima nuclear plant: TEPCO

The criminally negligent operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has admitted that yet another major setback has plagued a key system used to decontaminate highly-radioactive water.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) says about 1,100 liters of radioactive water overflowed into a barrier inside the ALPS building.

The water was used to wash contaminated equipment and overflowed from  a storage facility on Wednesday.

Comedy of Deadly Errors

The workers discovered the leak while cleaning a tank used for filtering radioactive substances from water. The tank is on one of the 3 separate stages  of the Advanced Liquid Processing System, or ALPS, local media reported TEPCO as saying.

The operator says the water contains more than 3.8 million becquerels of beta ray emitting materials including strontium and 6,700 becquerels of cesium 137.

On Tuesday, TEPCO reported that 203 tons of highly contaminated radioactive water had been pumped into a basement area at the Fukushima between April 10-13.

The building is neither a storage area nor a processing facility. The pumps  had diverted the contaminated water to the wrong building, the  company said.

TEPCO says it found four pumps operating at the location that were not even meant to be used.

[The deadly water may have been pumped intentionally by operators, sources suggest. Editor]

The water contained radioactive cesium decaying at a rate of 37 million becquerels per liter.

Highly contaminated water leaked from yet another  storage tank at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan.  Handout photo released by TEPCO on February 20.

On October 18, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima

On November 7, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Scale of potential catastrophe at Fukushima could dwarf a limited nuclear war.

On January 13, 2014 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

THE TEPCO REPORT, QUOTED BY JAPAN’S ASAHI SHIMBUN, MAY BE SERIOUSLY FLAWED.

ACCORDING TO http://new.atmc.jp/ THE RADIATION LEVEL AT OR NEAR FUKUSHIMA PLANT IS ≥ 40 MICROSIEVERT PER HOUR (OR ~ 350 mSv/yr)

NOTES:

1. Radiation dose of about 2,000 millisieverts (200,000 millirems) cause serious illness.

2. Average background radiation in the US is about 3 mS/yr. [Ironically, the average background radiation in many parts of Japan is about 1mS/yr, or a third of that in the U.S.]

3. The average annual radiation dose per person in the U.S. is currently 620 millirem (6.2 mSv), according to EPA. “Half of our average dose comes from natural background sources: cosmic radiation from space, naturally occurring radioactive minerals in the ground and in your body, and from the radioactive gases radon and thoron, which are created when other naturally occurring elements undergo radioactive decay. Another 48 percent of our dose comes from medical diagnostics and treatments.”

100 tons of highly radioactive water leaking here, 200 tons leaking there, and soon we’ll be talking big contamination!!! 

Related Links

• Record-high Radioactive Water Leaks at Fukushima NPP February 20, 2014

For earlier links search:

• Radiation Levels at Fukushima Hugely Underestimated: TEPCO February 8, 2014
• Look for the Cracks!  January 21, 2014
• “Radioactive River” Flowing at Fukushima No. 3 Reactor January 20, 2014
• Fukushima Radiation Level 8 Times* Govt Standard: TEPCO January 13, 2014
• Record Radiation Detected at Fukushima [AGAIN] December 22, 2013
• Japan Renews Nuke Ambitions Despite Fukushima, Common Sense December 14, 2013
• Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant December 9, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013

 

Record-high Radioactive Water Leaks at Fukushima NPP

NOTE: Many of the links posted below have previously been blocked or buried by Google, WordPress and others

SNAFU IN JAPAN
CRIMINAL INCOMPETENCE AT FUKUSHIMA
“COSMIC-LEVEL” RADIATION LEAK
CRIMES AGAINST NATURE
.

100 tons of highly radioactive water has leaked out of a tank: TEPCO

The criminally incompetent operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant says 100 tons of contaminated water containing record high levels of radioactive substances have overflowed from a storage tank.

Officials at Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) said on Thursday workers had found the highly contaminated, massive leak in one of the tanks near the Number 4 reactor building Wednesday night.

The spill contained an extraordinarily high 230-million becquerels per liter of beta-ray emitting substances, which is about 7.6 million times the government’s standard for contaminated water that can be released into the sea.

Highly contaminated water leaked from a storage tank at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan.  Handout photo released by TEPCO on February 20, 2014. (via Reuters).

On October 18, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima

On November 7, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Scale of potential catastrophe at Fukushima could dwarf a limited nuclear war.

On January 13, 2014 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

THE TEPCO REPORT, QUOTED BY JAPAN’S ASAHI SHIMBUN, MAY BE SERIOUSLY FLAWED.

ACCORDING TO http://new.atmc.jp/ THE RADIATION LEVEL AT OR NEAR FUKUSHIMA PLANT IS ≥ 40 MICROSIEVERT PER HOUR (OR ~ 350 mSv/yr)

NOTES:

1. Radiation dose of about 2,000 millisieverts (200,000 millirems) cause serious illness.

2. Average background radiation in the US is about 3 mS/yr. [Ironically, the average background radiation in many parts of Japan is about 1mS/yr, or a third of that in the U.S.]

3. The average annual radiation dose per person in the U.S. is currently 620 millirem (6.2 mSv), according to EPA. “Half of our average dose comes from natural background sources: cosmic radiation from space, naturally occurring radioactive minerals in the ground and in your body, and from the radioactive gases radon and thoron, which are created when other naturally occurring elements undergo radioactive decay. Another 48 percent of our dose comes from medical diagnostics and treatments.”

Related Links

• Radiation Levels at Fukushima Hugely Underestimated: TEPCO February 8, 2014
• Look for the Cracks!  January 21, 2014
• “Radioactive River” Flowing at Fukushima No. 3 Reactor January 20, 2014
• Fukushima Radiation Level 8 Times* Govt Standard: TEPCO January 13, 2014
• Record Radiation Detected at Fukushima [AGAIN] December 22, 2013
• Japan Renews Nuke Ambitions Despite Fukushima, Common Sense December 14, 2013
• Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant December 9, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013

For additional links to the never-ending nuclear disaster at Fukushima, search blog content, where they have not been hacked.

Radiation Levels at Fukushima Hugely Underestimated: TEPCO

NOTE: Many of the links posted below have previously been blocked or buried by Google, WordPress and others

“NEVER-ENDING” NUCLEAR DISASTER
.

TEPCO admits serious flaws in its Fukushima radiation readings

The operator of the nuked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant said it will review its radiation data because their initial readings may be seriously flawed.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) says it detected radiation levels of 5 million becquerels per liter of radioactive strontium in groundwater samples collected last July from one of its wells near the ocean.

The radioactivity level is more than 160,000 times the regulatory maximum  for radioactive wastewater allowed to be released into the sea.

A team [of well-paid observers]  from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) holding hands singing kumbaya at Fukushima, December 2013. “The team has praised Japan for making progress in stabilizing the Fukushima nuclear plant,” reported BBC. Image IAEA handout via Reuters/BBC.

Based on the latest admission, TEPCO now estimates with that level of radioactive strontium present, the count for beta-emitting radioactive substances must be 10 million becquerels per liter, or 11 times their initial estimate of 900,000 becquerels per liter, reported NHK.

The plant operator attributes the error to incorrect measuring methods that were in place until last October.

TEPCO says it will review other data acquired using the old, improper method, including the radiation level of more than 300 tons of toxic waste water that leaked from a storage tank in August 2013.

The initial reading for the leaked radioactive water showed up to 80-million becquerels per liter of beta ray-emitting substances, including strontium, said the report.

On October 18, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima

On November 7, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

• Scale of potential catastrophe at Fukushima could dwarf a limited nuclear war.

On January 13, 2014 FIRE-EARTH said [but was censored by Google, WordPress and others]:

THE TEPCO REPORT, QUOTED BY JAPAN’S ASAHI SHIMBUN, MAY BE SERIOUSLY FLAWED.

ACCORDING TO http://new.atmc.jp/ THE RADIATION LEVEL AT OR NEAR FUKUSHIMA PLANT IS ≥ 40 MICROSIEVERT PER HOUR (OR ~ 350 mSv/yr)

NOTES:

1. Radiation dose of about 2,000 millisieverts (200,000 millirems) cause serious illness.

2. Average background radiation in the US is about 3 mS/yr.]

3. The average annual radiation dose per person in the U.S. is currently 620 millirem (6.2 mSv), according to EPA. “Half of our average dose comes from natural background sources: cosmic radiation from space, naturally occurring radioactive minerals in the ground and in your body, and from the radioactive gases radon and thoron, which are created when other naturally occurring elements undergo radioactive decay. Another 48 percent of our dose comes from medical diagnostics and treatments.”

Related Links

• Look for the Cracks!  January 21, 2014
• “Radioactive River” Flowing at Fukushima No. 3 Reactor January 20, 2014
• Fukushima Radiation Level 8 Times* Govt Standard: TEPCO January 13, 2014
• Record Radiation Detected at Fukushima [AGAIN] December 22, 2013
• Japan Renews Nuke Ambitions Despite Fukushima, Common Sense December 14, 2013
• Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant December 9, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013

For additional links to the never-ending nuclear disaster at Fukushima, search blog content, where they have not been hacked.

Look for the Cracks!

NOTE: At least two of the links posted below have previously been censored by Google and WordPress

ONGOING NUCLEAR DISASTER
.

Fukushima Farce: Look for the cracks and ya shall find them at the and of the brook!

A day or so after FIRE-EARTH Editor suggested radioactive leaks inside the No. 3 reactor building most probably came from cracks in the containment vessel, the plant operator TEPCO says they suspect the leak originates from around an opening in the containment vessel which connects to a steam pipe.

TEPCO says the area around the opening had previously been sealed with resin, but the substance likely deteriorated after being exposed to the heat from the melted fuel and salt from sea water poured into the vessels immediately after the disaster to cool down the chamber.

Technicians are now planning to locate the racks in the containment vessel and seal them, TEPCO said. [DO NOT use the same type of resin!!! Editor.]

Once they have sealed the cracks, they can refill the vessel with water and remove the melted fuel, at least in theory.

However, they cannot enter the reactor building without being exposed to cosmic levels of radiation.

On October 18, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [and Google/Wordpress censored]: Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima

On November 7, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [and Google/Wordpress censored]: Scale of potential catastrophe at Fukushima could dwarf a limited nuclear war.

Related Links

• “Radioactive River” Flowing at Fukushima No. 3 Reactor January 20, 2014

• Fukushima Radiation Level 8 Times* Govt Standard: TEPCO January 13, 2014
• Record Radiation Detected at Fukushima [AGAIN] December 22, 2013
• Japan Renews Nuke Ambitions Despite Fukushima, Common Sense December 14, 2013
• Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant December 9, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013

For additional links to the ongoing nuclear disaster at Fukushima, search blog content.

“Radioactive River” Flowing at Fukushima No. 3 Reactor

NOTE: At least two of the links posted below have previously been censored by Google/WordPress

ONGOING NUCLEAR DISASTER
.

Stream of radioactive water 30-cm wide continuously flowing at Reactor No.3

The plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), says the radioactive water leaking from the number 3 reactor building is most probably coming from the containment vessel.

A camera installed on a robot took a video of the radioactive stream on the first floor of the reactor building on Saturday. The stream, 30cm wide, is continuously flowing into a drain, said TEPCO.

“Radiactive River” at Fukushima Reactor No. 3. Source: Screenshot from TEPCO video broadcast by NHK.

Technicians have detected 24 million becquerels per liter of beta ray-emitting radioactive substances, including strontium, as well as 1.7 million becquerels per liter of Cesium 137, TEPCO said in a statement.

That level of contamination is almost as high as the radioactive materials in the water that has been accumulating in the basement of reactor building.

The water temperature is about 20ºC, which matches the temperature of the water at the bottom of the reactor [containment vessel,] said TEPCO.

TEPCO officials believe the water for cooling melted fuel in the containment vessel is leaking for reason that are unknown to them. [Try cracks in the containment vessel. Editor]

The company said they will continue with their investigation until they get to the bottom of it (!)

On November 7, 2013 FIRE-EARTH said [and Google/Wordpress censored]:

Scale of potential catastrophe at Fukushima could dwarf a limited nuclear war.

Related Links

• Fukushima Radiation Level 8 Times* Govt Standard: TEPCO January 13, 2014
• Record Radiation Detected at Fukushima [AGAIN] December 22, 2013
• Japan Renews Nuke Ambitions Despite Fukushima, Common Sense December 14, 2013
• Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant December 9, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013

For additional links to ongoing nuclear disaster at Fukushima, search blog content.

Record Outdoor Radiation Level Detected at Nuked Fukushima Plant

Record 25 sieverts per hour detected at Fukushima No. 1 reactor: TEPCO

Radiation was detected in an area near a steel pipe that connects reactor buildings and could kill a person in 20 minutes, if exposed, local media reported.

The highest radiation level [so far] was detected at an outdoor location at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear reactor on Dec. 6, said Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), the plant’s operator and the utility responsible for the clean-up of the crippled nuclear plant.

The reading of 25 sieverts per hour was taken on steel piping near an exhaust stack for the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors, TEPCO reported.

An exhaust stack sits between the No. 1 and No. 2 reactor buildings at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, March 15, 2011. Source:  TEPCO handout.

In an earlier report, the utility announced high radiation levels of at least 10 sieverts per hour were found on the piping outside the reactor.

“TEPCO measured airborne radiation at eight locations around the piping to calculate surface radiation on two spots with particularly high readings, and found about 25 sieverts per hour and about 15 sieverts per hour, the company said,” local media reported.

Radioactive materials separated from melted fuel may have entered the pipes during venting shortly after the plant was “nuked” in March 2011 and remained there, said a TEPCO official.

The catastrophic mega earthquake that struck the Tōhoku region on March 11, 2011 triggered a major tsunami that inflicted massive damage along Japan’s east coast, paralyzing the Fukushima Daiichi (No. 1) nuclear plant and causing triple meltdown with large-scale radioactive fallout.

More than 400 tons of contaminated water is being produced and stored in hastily prepared, unsuitable containers at the site each day.  The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) proposed last week to consider dumping toxic water into the ocean.

“Regarding the growing amounts of contaminated water at the site, TEPCO should… examine all options for its further management, including the possibility of resuming controlled discharges (into the ocean) in compliance with authorized (!) limits,” said the IAEA in a statement.

Two-thirds of evacuees from Fukushima towns won’t be returning home

A survey conducted in October by  Reconstruction Agency showed that 67.1 percent of respondents from Okuma and 64.7 percent from Futaba  had decided not to return home. The latest figures were up from 42.3 percent and 30.4 percent, respectively from a January survey, which used slightly different wording, said Asahi-Shimbun.

The towns of Okuma and Futaba were turned into ghost town following the mass evacuations that ensued the Fukushima reactor  meltdowns.

At least 73  percent of respondents from Okuma said radiation levelshad   not fallen, while 68 percent of Futaba evacuees said it would take too long before they could return to their hometown.

“The survey covered the heads of 5,043 households in Okuma and of 3,394 households in Futaba,” said the report.

Related Links

• 80 Percent Chance of Major Catastrophe at Fukushima NPP November 7, 2013
• Crimes Against Nature: Water Overflows from 12 Fukushima Barriers Posted on October 21, 2013
• Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima October 18, 2013
• TEPCO Continues to Contaminate the World October 3, 2013
• Overflow of Water from the Dike of H8-South Area at Fukushima Daiichi NPS  Oct 2, 2013

• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013
• Disaster Deepens at “Nuked” Fukushima Plant August 21, 2013
• Fukushima SNAFU August 20, 2013

For earlier links, where they have not been hacked, search blog content.

Global Disasters/ Significant Events – November 18, 2013

Global Disasters/ Significant Events – November 18, 2013

Deadly Tornadoes Attack U.S. Midwest

At least SIX people were killed and dozens more injured after 67 tornadoes [confirmed total] spawned by a massive weather system struck parts of 9 states, including Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky. Some 442 events have so far been reported across NINE states after Sunday storm attacks, which flattened large section of the city of Washington, Ill.

Plane crash in Russia’s Kazan kills 50 people on board

Russian authorities confirmed that all 50 people aboard a passenger plane were killed when the aircraft  crashed on landing in central Russia’s city of Kazan, capital of Tatarstan Republic.

Egypt train and bus crash kills 24 near Cairo

24 people were killed and 20 others injured when a train crashed into a pickup truck and a bus near Cairo, the state news agency MENA said on Monday.

50 Children were killed when a train hit their school bus near Manfalut, about  350km south of Cairo, on November 17, 2012.

Guided-missile cruiser struck by “friendly” drone: LATimes

The guided-missile cruiser Chancellorsville was  struck by an aerial-target drone during a training exercise off Ventura County, officials said.

BQM-74E target drones are launched from the guided-missile destroyer McCampbell in 2010. (Ensign Colleen R. Praxmarer / U.S. Navy)

The US Navy vessel was struck on its port side by an BQM-74 series drone, leaving two sailors with burns.

“The drone, controlled from Point Mugu, was being used during a routine exercise meant to test the ship’s radar system’s tracking ability. The test was not designed for the ship to shoot down the drone,” LATimes quoted officials as saying.

Navy technicians are examining the extent of damage to the ship, as other specialists try to establish the possible cause of the drone malfunction, said the report.

Bomb attack kills 31 in Syria including 4 generals

A bomb attack by Saudi-backed foreign terrorists on an army base near Damascus killed at least 31 Syrian military personnel including four generals,  according to reports.

“Three generals and a brigadier-general were among 31 troops killed in a bomb attack that caused a building in the army transport base in Harasta to collapse,” said director for Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Libya declares a State of Emergency in Tripoli as deadly violence erupts

A 48-hour state of emergency has been declared in the Libyan capital Tripoli after gun battles between rival militia groups left at least 45 people dead and more than 400 wounded.

However, eyewitnesses say the death toll is much higher than the official figures.

“Officially, there were more than 40 victims in the clashes in Tripoli in the past two days, but according to our data, the number of victims is much larger,” a medic on the scene told reporters.

Potentially Disastrous Fuel Rod Removal Operation Starts at Fukushima Daiichi

The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. TEPCO, has begun removing nuclear fuel rods from a storage pool at a damaged No. 4 reactor building.

The pool contains 1,533 fuel units, of which 1,331 are highly radioactive spent rods. The operator decided to remove unused units first because they release less radiation and heat than the used ones.

Philippines Mega Disaster Update – SitRep No. 27

Super Typhoon HAIYAN affected up to 14 million Filipinos, leaving 5,578 dead or missing, 4,009, 074 homeless, and causing at least PHP10.4 billion worth of damage to the country’s agriculture and infrastructure.

Source: SitRep No. 27 released by Philippines National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRMC)  November 18, 2013. [$1 = 43.66 Philippine pesos]

Mass Burials

Town officials bury some of the victims of the Super Typhoon HAIYAN in a mass grave. Credit: Local news media.

This post will be updated throughout the day as more information becomes available.

FRANCISCO Drenches Okinawa, Moves Northeast

FRANCISCO weakens to a wet tropical storm

Tropical Storm FRANCISCO was located near 26.8ºN, 130.6ºE at 14:00 UTC, moving Northeast at about 12km/hr. The storm was located about 260 km east of Okinawa, as of posting.

A very wet Tropical Storm FRANCISCO moves closer to mainland Japan as a covetous Super Typhoon LEKIMA looks on.  VISIBLE/INFRARED satellite image (FIRE-EARTH Enhancement) recorded at 13:30UTC on October 24, 2013. Original image sourced from: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC.

Meantime, Super Typhoon LEKIMA with sustained winds of more than 240 km/hr and gusting up to 300 km/hr was moving northwestward at an average forward speed of about 25 km/hr. LEKIMA was located about 500km ESE of Iwo To (Iwo Jima) Island, at 14:00UTC.

Majestic Super Typhoon LEKIMA. SW IR satellite image recorded at 13:30UTC on October 24, 2013.  Image sourced from: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC.

Typhoon Stats for NW Pacific

• The 60 year average (1951-2010) No of Typhoons: 20.9
• No of typhoons so far this year: 28
• Percent Increase: 34 [Calculated by FIRE-EARTH blog]

Related News

Nansei Sekiyu KK, a Japanese refiner owned by Petrobras, has shut down marine operations at its 100,000 barrels-per-day refinery in Okinawa, due to typhoon FRANCISCO, said a report.

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant

The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is running out of options to store radioactive contaminated rainwater as a very wet FRANCISCO approaches.

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has started  transferring contaminated rainwater into underground pools, originally deemed too leaky. The precipitation from recent typhoons and extreme rain events have been accumulating in barriers around radioactive waste water tanks, reported NHK.

TEPCO has been storing the most contaminated rainwater in tanks and in the basement of a turbine building. But the tanks are now full, the report said

More details to follow…

Related Links

• Typhoon FRANCISCO and TD 27 Headed for Tokyo October 20, 2013
• FRANCISCO Intensifying to “Extraterrestrial” Storm Force  October 19, 2013
• FRANCISCO Shifts Up Into Major Typhoon Gear October 18, 2013
• Typhoon FRANCISCO Inching Toward Japan October 17, 2013
• FEWW New Hurricane Scale
• Satellite Imagery

Links to Typhoon WIPHA

• Typhoon WIPHA Dumps 800mm of Rain Over Tokyo October 16, 2013
• Typhoon WIPHA Targets Tokyo October 15, 2013
• Typhoon NARI Chased by TS WIPHA October 12, 2013
• Vietnam Evacuates 250,000 ahead of NARI October 14, 2013

Fukushima Potentially More Disastrous Than Hiroshima

Radioactivity spikes 6,500 times at Fukushima: TEPCO

The crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant’s operator, TEPCO, says it detected a sharp rise in radioactivity in a well near a storage tank on Thursday, NHK reported.

On Thursday, workers detected 400,000 becquerels per liter of beta ray-emitting radioactive substances, including strontium, at a well  near the tank that  leaked more than 300 tons of contaminated water in August, TEPCO said.

The radioactivity level was 6,500 times higher than the readings taken the previous day.

“The well was dug to monitor the impact of the leakage and is located at about 10 meters from the tank,” the report said.

TEPCO believes the latest findings are indicative of ground water contamination, because radioactive substances like as strontium are transferred relatively slowly.

Given the extent of Fukushima catastrophe, the operator’s inability to deal with the ever-worsening disasters at the site and Japanese government’s “wait-and-see” attitude, to put it mildly, the blog Moderators believe the situation at the disaster-stricken plant could potentially become as bad, if not worse than the aftermath of Hiroshima atom bomb.

Related Links

• Fukushima SNAFU August 20, 2013
• Radioactive Water at Fukushima an ‘Emergency’: Watchdog  August 5, 2013
• Strong Quake Shakes Fukushima NPP  September 19, 2013
• MAN-YI Eying Tokyo, Fukushima September 15, 2013
• Japan Angry by Cartoon Linking Fukushima to Olympics September 12, 2013
• Fukushima Fatal Farce Turns Deadlier September 1, 2013
• Nuked Fukushima Plant: New High Radiation Areas Found August 22, 2013
• Disaster Deepens at “Nuked” Fukushima Plant August 21, 2013
• About Half the Kids In Fukushima Have Thyroid Radiation Exposure ‎ July 5, 2011

Earlier Links

• Will the Scope of Fukushima Nuclear Disaster Widen? April 6, 2011
• Probability of a Nuclear Disaster – by Country April 18, 2011

U.S. Corn Condition Continues Worsening

51 percent of the U.S. corn crop in very poor or poor condition

The amount of U.S. corn crops considered to be in very poor or poor conditions increased to 51 percent in the week ending August 12, 2012, a rise of one percent since previous week, according to the USDA Crop Progress released August 13, 2012.

• The amount of corn regarded as being in good or excellent condition remained unchanged at 23 percent. It was 60 percent last year.
• The USDA statistics are based on 18 States which planted 92% of the 2011 corn acreage:  Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.

Other Global Disasters/ Significant Events

• Fukushima butterflies have mutated following exposure to radioactive material released into environment

Previous Corn Progress

• More Corn Grilled on the Cob Posted on August 7, 2012
• Half U.S. Corn in Very Poor or Poor Condition Posted July 30, 2012
• Deadly Drought Worsens Corn, Soybean, Pasture and Range Conditions Posted July 24, 2012

Related Links

• U.S. Disaster Impact Leaps 24 Folds Posted  August 1, 2012
• U.S. Disaster Areas Expand as Drought Deepens Posted August 1, 2012
• Extreme and Exceptional Drought Spread Across Midwest, South Posted August 2, 2012
• Wildfires Destroy Oklahoma Town Posted August 5, 2012

• Watching Events Unfold, Frame by Frame, Exactly as Forecast Posted July 20, 2012
• Deadly Heat Continues to Devour U.S. Crops Posted July 19, 2012

• Drought Continues to Plague Two-Thirds of Continental U.S. Posted July 17, 2012
• Largest Ever U.S. Disaster Continues Unfolding July 14, 2012
• Drought 2012 Posted on January 8, 2012
• Drought and deluge 

Radiation heading east towards the US

Atomic Energy: A Tragicomedy of Errors

Low levels of radioactive particles are detected on their way to N. America: Swedish official

Radioactivity from the disaster-stricken Fukushima NPP will  reach North American shores  within days, a Swedish official has said.

The research director at the Swedish Defense Research Institute (SDRI), a government agency, was quoted as saying that, based  on data received from a network of global monitoring stations, some radioactive particles, albeit minuscule amounts, would cross the Atlantic, and even reach Europe, as did after the Chernobyl disaster.

“It is not something you see normally,” Lars-Erik De Geer told Reuters. However, “it is not high from any danger point of view.”

“It is only a question of very, very low activities so it is nothing for people to worry about,” he said.

“In the past when they had nuclear weapons tests in China … then there were similar clouds all the time without anybody caring about it at all.”More …

US Citizen Advised to Leave from 80-km Radius of NPP

Earlier today, the state department advised all US citizens living within 80km (50 miles)  of Fukushima Daiichi NPP to leave the area. Japanese government’s exclusion zone is 20km, with a 20-30km caution zone.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission  released the following statement:

“All the available information continues to indicate Hawaii, Alaska, the U.S. Territories and the U.S. West Coast are not expected to experience any harmful levels of radioactivity.”

Three Mile Island

Meanwhile, the US Energy Secretary said the situation seemed to be more serious than the 1979 partial meltdown of the Three Mile Island NNP in Pennsylvania.

The French Connection

According to nuke scientists in France, the Three Mile Island partial meltdown was a 5 on a scale of 1 to 7, with the Chernobyl core meltdown scoring 7, and the Fukushima NPP crisis so far rating 6 in severity.

The Chinese Gamble

The Chinese authorities are having second thoughts about their wholesale nuclear energy plan. They are building 27 new reactors (a total of 70 are under construction globally), but have  suspended approval for new plants because of the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi NNP.

China had ambitiously planned to build at least 110 nuclear reactors during the next five years.

“We will temporarily suspend approval for nuclear power projects, including those that have already begun preliminary work, before nuclear safety regulations are approved,” said an official statement.

“Safety is our top priority in developing nuclear power plants.”

Most of China’s new NPP’s are planned near high-population areas, and “China’s State Council has assured people that the country will not be affected by the radioactive leaks.” Said a report.

We Are Not Invincible!

However many Chinese prefer to buy salt for “radiation protection” rather than believe the government assurances about radiation safety.

People are hoarding huge quantities of salt for protection against radiation. Potassium iodide, a salt, provides protection against thyroid cancer caused by radiation.

Related Links:

• Intelligent People and Nuclear Power Plants