BREAKING NEWS:
MAJOR FIRE AT NO 4 REACTOR CAUSES HIGHLY RADIOACTIVE LEAK AT FUKUSHIMA DAI-ICH NPP
A fire has broken out at the No. 4 Reactor at Fukushima No.1 Nuclear Power Plant and radiation levels are rising considerably as a result of a leak, Japanese PM Naoto Kan has just announced.
Mr Kan has advised people within the 30-km of the doomed nuclear power plant to stay indoors and await further instructions.
He has also asked anyone who has not already been evacuated from the 20-km radius of the two nuclear plants to leave the danger zone.
“I sincerely ask all citizens within the 20-km distance from the reactor to leave this zone,” he said in a televised bulletin.
The fire was reportedly caused by an explosion near a containment pool where spent fuel rods were kept.
Japanese govt has imposed a 30-km NO-FLY ZONE over the doomed Fukushima NPP.
Radiation Reports Tuesday
- About 400 milisievert detected near Fukushima NPP No1 reactor
- 100 milisivert near No 4 reactor
- 30 milisievert near No 2 and 3 reactors
Note: Exposure to 400 milisievert over a 1.5 to 2-hr period burns the skin and makes the victim very sick.
In Tokyo up 20 times the amount of background radiation was detected, though the elevated amount is not believed to cause any harm to humans.
Above background radiation have also been detected in all surrounding and nearby prefectures.
NEW EXPLOSION ROCKS FUKUSHIMA DAI-ICH NUCLEAR PLANT
Another explosion at No. 2 Reactor rocked the Fukushima Daiichi plant Tuesday
The latest explosion occurred at reactor 2 at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, as engineers were trying to pump sea water into the three partially destroyed reactors.
The radiation reading at 8:31am (JST) had climbed to 8,217 microsievert per hour from a previous level of 1,941 microsievert half an hour earlier earlier, TEPCO the plant operators said. The background radiation to which people are exposed to is about 1,000 to 2,400 microsievert per year.
The No.3 nuclear reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant at Minamisoma continues to burn after an explosion that occurred at 11:01 on Monday March 14, following the Sendai Megaquake and tsunami. Handout satellite image taken by Digital Globe/via Reuters.
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear plants are located about 240km (150 miles) north-east of Japan capital city, Tokyo.
Meanwhile, the U.S. 7th Fleet, operating about 160km (100miles) northeast of the nuclear plants, moved away its ships and aircraft carriers after detecting radioactive contamination on aircraft operating in the area.
Low levels of radiation were found on 17 air crew members, operating in three helicopters, when they returned to the USS Ronald Reagan, reports say.
The nuclear began after a 9.0Mw Megaquake followed by a deadly tsunami struck the eastern coast of Japan’s main island of Honshu Friday.
Up to 200,000 people have so far been evacuated from a 20-km radii of both Fukushima Plants Nos. 1 and 2. The quake and tsunami has left about 550,000 people homeless, as millions of people endure their fourth day without water, food, gas, fuel, electricity and adequate clothing in freezing temperatures.
Petrol has been rationed throughout the country. Our colleagues in different Japan were only allowed to buy only 10 liters of gasoline this morning.
The mounting death toll stands at 2,000 to more than 10,000 depending on the source of different reports.
The Sendai Megaquake is now officially the world’s 4th strongest quake since 1900, and Japan’s largest recorded shock since records began 140 years ago.
Explosions Timline:
- The first explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant occurred at 3:45.45 pm on Saturday, March 12, 2011
- The Second explosion occurred at reactor 3 at 11:01 on Monday, March 14.
- The third explosion occurred at reactor 2 just after 6:13 am on Tuesday March 15.
Japan has 55 nuclear reactors, 14 of which are in the quake and tsunami-hit areas.
Japanese govt has reportedly distributed about a quarter of a million units of stable iodine to evacuation centers near the damaged nuclear plants, as a precautionary measure. Iodine can help protect against thyroid cancer if a person is is exposed to low-levels of radiation.
Fire Earth 