Dave James Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 The real fear is that if one of the three or four reactors that are having cooling problems begins to melt down, it will release so much radiation that the management of the other ones that are still under some kind of control will not be possible. If that happens, then this disaster, which is already way more than you can get your arms around, becomes exponentially worse. Quote
Son-of-a-Weizen Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 Odd the way those deck chairs (at the stern) are neatly arranged around the table. Hard to believe that those would be bolted down on a pleasure craft. Quote
RDK Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 Some of those images are incredibly surreal. And the videos are terrifying. What's even more frightening is thinking how much worse it could've been if the epicenter was under a city like Tokyo. I'm glad to hear that our Japanese board members seem to be okay. Quote
ghost of miles Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 (edited) You may need Facebook access to be able to watch this video, but it's a harrowing view of the tsunami coming through a town in Japan: Tsunami footage Gives a very up-close sense of its impact. EDIT: video now posted to YouTube. Wanted to repost this link as well: How you can help Japan Edited March 14, 2011 by ghost of miles Quote
Rooster_Ties Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 The real fear is that if one of the three or four reactors that are having cooling problems begins to melt down, it will release so much radiation that the management of the other ones that are still under some kind of control will not be possible. If that happens, then this disaster, which is already way more than you can get your arms around, becomes exponentially worse. Fuck. I didn't even think about that (the impact on adjacent reactors). I'm trying not to be alarmist about the nuclear situation there, but it does appear to be slowly getting worse by the day. On a scale from one to ten, with "10" = Chernobyl -- I'm getting the sense from everything I'm hearing (BBC & NPR and on-line), that they're at a good solid "6" at the moment -- and headed, albeit slowly, in the wrong direction. The "experts" I'm hearing are saying that at this point, it can't get as bad as Chernobyl (because the reaction is stopped, the reactors are already cooler with a lot less pressure than Chernobyl), so maybe an "8" on the scale I just made up is as bad as it can get. Still, very little positive news seems to be happening with regards to these reactors. Quote
Rooster_Ties Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 (edited) Damn it, now the 2nd reactor (the one that appeared to be the most stable) is now perhaps in the worst shape of all three that are failing. Another Reactor Now Crippled I gather from this NYT report that the reactor at Daiichi that until today seemd to be doing okay has, within the span of 24 hours (maybe just 12 hours), become the most dangerously crippled of all the troubled reactors in Japan. For those keeping track, that is reactor No. 2 at the Fukushima Daiichi plant: The extreme challenge of managing reactor No. 2 came as officials were still struggling to keep the cores of two other reactors, No. 1 and No. 3, covered with seawater. There was no immediate indication that either of those two reactors had experienced a crisis as serious as that at No. 2 The Times also quotes a senior nuclear industry executive as saying that "full-scale panic" has set in among Japanese power industry managers. "They're in total disarray, they don't know what to do," the source told the Times. Sorry to be linking to TPM about this (a tertiary source at best), but their's is the quickest summery I could find -- and is well sourced. I'm quoting the blog post in full (it's so short, but all of it is relevant), but you'll have to go to the TPM page to get the NYT link. Edited March 14, 2011 by Rooster_Ties Quote
GA Russell Posted March 14, 2011 Report Posted March 14, 2011 Here's a brief but good synopsis of the current situation at the Fukushima plant. As I understand it, that one plant has three reactors. Reactor #1 suffered an explosion Saturday. Reactor #3 suffered an explosion today. Today's explosion damaged four of the five pumps being used to pump sea water to cool the reactors down. As a result, they currently do not have the ability to cool Reactor #2. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12733393 Quote
Big Wheel Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Wrong and outdated to boot. Fukushima I has six reactors, not 3. Reactors 4, 5, and 6 were undergoing repairs at the time of the earthquake and thus have no heat problems. All of the reported trouble has been with 1, 2, and 3. The second explosion, in reactor 3, was yesterday, not today. There has now been a third explosion in reactor 2. Information right now is sketchy but does not sound encouraging. Quote
Dave James Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Not looking good. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/world/asia/15nuclear.html?hp Quote
Big Wheel Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Listening to the announcement going right now on NHK. Apparently there *are* problems now with reactor 4 - while no fuel rods were in it at the earthquake, it still contained hot spent fuel and is currently on fire. Quote
papsrus Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Not looking good. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/world/asia/15nuclear.html?hp That sounds grim all right. Japanese Prime Minsiter Naoto Kan was preparing to make a televised address to the nation at 11 a.m. Tokyo time. Is that midnight Eastern time? Quote
Big Wheel Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Not looking good. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/world/asia/15nuclear.html?hp That sounds grim all right. Japanese Prime Minsiter Naoto Kan was preparing to make a televised address to the nation at 11 a.m. Tokyo time. Is that midnight Eastern time? It just completed. They are telling people within 30km of Fukushima I to stay indoors. The radiation readings they are taking now are significantly higher than before, but there's no info on what radiation levels in the surrounding areas are like. Quote
Adam Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 More on it here: http://allthingsnuclear.org/tagged/Japan_nuclear Apparently they were storing spent fuel in reactors 4, 5, and 6. Quote
kinuta Posted March 15, 2011 Author Report Posted March 15, 2011 I'm feeling very heavy stress now. I won't be posting for the time being. Quote
JohnJ Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Kinuta, I understand. Most employees left our office around lunchtime once there was news of a spike in the levels of radioactivity around the nuclear plant. With the prevailing winds there are fears that a radioactive cloud will reach Tokyo this evening and people want to get home as quickly as possible, particularly given the fact that so many train lines are still not operating normally. Also reports of people trying to leave Tokyo and head west to relative safety. Just me and the boss around now, we both live centrally and can go home in 15 minutes or so. There is definitely an increasing level of concern. Quote
brownie Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 I'm feeling very heavy stress now. I won't be posting for the time being. we share (or try to share) your concern. Really hope to see you and your posts back here when things return to normal! Quote
Peter Johnson Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 My heart is absolutely breaking from the stories I'm hearing. "I had her hand, but I lost it." "I'm sure my wife will contact me when she is able." It's horrifying, incomprehensible, and so terribly sad. To be sure, there will be amazing stories that come out of this, but for now my heart is heavy and my thoughts go out to all who have been affected. Quote
David Ayers Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 BBC is one source for constant updates: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12307698 Quote
king ubu Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 I'm feeling very heavy stress now. I won't be posting for the time being. we share (or try to share) your concern. Really hope to see you and your posts back here when things return to normal! Same here. Wishing you all the best! Hope the worst won't take place... but the whole information situation seems to be about as bad as back when Tchernobyl happened. The concealment going on between nuclear lobbies, the whole power manufacturing industry and their politician slaves is disgusting... the spinelessness of politicians over here is hard to bear, just watch what's going on in Germany, for instance. Quote
J.A.W. Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 I'm feeling very heavy stress now. I won't be posting for the time being. All the best, Dave. Quote
J.A.W. Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Hiroshi just told me he was able to contact his family and friends in the disaster area and they seem to be OK. Hiroshi himself lives 1,500 KM (about 935 miles) further south and he's relatively safe at the moment. Quote
.:.impossible Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 I am feeling very small at the moment, realizing just how far away all of this is and just how little this affects daily life here. Very sad to think that most folks are going on about their business as if nothing is happening. Quote
Rooster_Ties Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 Thoughts and prayers, thoughts and prayers. Quote
Daniel A Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 On a scale from one to ten, with "10" = Chernobyl -- I'm getting the sense from everything I'm hearing (BBC & NPR and on-line), that they're at a good solid "6" at the moment -- and headed, albeit slowly, in the wrong direction. The IAEA introduced a system for rating nuclear events in 1990, called INES (International Nuclear Event Scale). Chernobyl was rated "7" which is the highest level. The last official statement from Japanese authorities regarding the INES rating seems to be from three days ago when it was rated "4", but the French nuclear safety authorities (among others) have upgrated the rating to "6". Here's a summary on the IAEA website: http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/tsunamiupdate01.html Quote
jazzbo Posted March 15, 2011 Report Posted March 15, 2011 (edited) The mind reels trying to absorb information about this from afar. My thoughts and prayers go out to all. Edited March 15, 2011 by jazzbo Quote
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.