This page has been archived and commenting is disabled.
TEPCO Admits To Another Cover Up As Radioactivity In Seawater Near Fukushima Soars To 1,251 Above Legal Limit
The latest news out of Fukushima confirms fears that irradiated water containment at the radioactive plant has been complete breached, after Radioactive iodine-131 at a concentration 1,250.8 times the legal limit was detected Friday morning in a seawater sample taken around 330 meters south of the plant, near the drainage outlets of the four troubled reactors, the government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said Saturday. As Kyodo updates: "The level rose to its highest so far in the survey begun this week,
after remaining around levels about 100 times the legal limit. It is
highly likely that radioactive water in the plant has found its way into
the sea, TEPCO said." It's all good though: the government has a prepared strawman for this unprecedented surge in radioactivity as well."Radioactive materials ''will be significantly diluted'' by the time they are consumed by marine species, the agency said, adding it would not have a significant impact on fishery products as fishing is not being conducted in the area within 20 kilometers of the plant because the government has issued a directive for residents in the zone to evacuate." But none of this matter as we get the latest confirmation that no news coming out of the stricken plant can be trusted: "TEPCO's Fukushima office acknowledged Saturday that it had known earlier that the radiation in the underground level of the turbine building of one of the reactors was extremely high, but had not made the information available to pertinent parties."
From Reuters: " Officials said iodine 131 levels in seawater 30 km (19 miles) from the coastal nuclear complex were within acceptable limits established by regulations and the contamination posed little risk to aquatic life. "Ocean currents will disperse radiation particles and so it will be very diluted by the time it gets consumed by fish and seaweed," said Hidehiko Nishiyama, a senior official from Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency. Despite that reassurance, the disclosure may well heighten international concern over Japanese seafood exports. Several countries have already banned milk and produce from areas around the Fukushima Daiichi plant, while others have been monitoring Japanese seafood." So fear not - instead of having 10 fins, that yummy piece of toro you are injesting will sport only a substantially "diluted" 5. Also, expect to see Kan eating seaweed and sashimi, and washing it down with radioactive tap water on TV any minute to prove just how safe everything really is.
More from Kyodo:
The level rose to its highest so far in the survey begun this week, after remaining around levels about 100 times the legal limit. It is highly likely that radioactive water in the plant has found its way into the sea, TEPCO said.
Radioactive materials ''will be significantly diluted'' by the time they are consumed by marine species, the agency said, adding it would not have a significant impact on fishery products as fishing is not being conducted in the area within 20 kilometers of the plant because the government has issued a directive for residents in the zone to evacuate.
TEPCO is planning to inject fresh water into pools storing the spent nuclear fuel at the plant to prevent crystallized salt from seawater already injected from hampering the smooth circulation of water and thus diminishing the cooling effect. It has begun injecting fresh water into the reactor containers of the No. 1 and No. 3 as well as No. 2 reactors.
At the same time, the company is trying to remove the pools of water containing highly concentrated radioactive substances that may have seeped from either the reactor cores or the spent fuel pools.
On Thursday, three workers were exposed to water containing radioactive materials 10,000 times the normal level at the turbine building connected to the No. 3 reactor building.
On Friday, a pool of water with a similarly high concentration of radioactive materials was found in the No. 1 reactor's turbine building, causing some restoration work to be suspended.
Similar pools of water were also found in the turbine buildings of the No. 2 and No. 4 reactors, measuring up to 1 meter and 80 centimeters deep, respectively. Those near the No. 1 and No. 3 reactors were up to 40 cm and 1.5 meters deep, respectively.
And the most dramatic example of strategic idiocy: all the hoopla about dumping tons of water on the reactors will now have to be undone:
While analyzing the radioactivity levels of the pools from the water found in the No. 2 and No. 4 reactors, TEPCO will remove the water in all four reactor units to reduce the risk of more workers being exposed to radioactive substances, it said.
The risk would hinder efforts to restore the plant's crippled cooling functions, which are crucial to overcoming the crisis, the government's nuclear safety agency said.
But the most infuriating development is the latest disclosure from TEPCO that once again it covered up critical data.
TEPCO's Fukushima office acknowledged Saturday that it had known earlier that the radiation in the underground level of the turbine building of one of the reactors was extremely high, but had not made the information available to pertinent parties.
Edano criticized the utility's handling of the data, saying unless it reports necessary information to authorities in a timely manner, ''the government will not be able to give appropriate instructions and (TEPCO) will make workers, and eventually the public, distrustful'' of the firm.
So aside from the constant lies and misinformation, the public can be assued that all is well.
»
- 24845 reads
- Printer-friendly version
- Send to friend
- advertisements -
http://tinyurl.com/5t32489
'Fire Officer's Handbook of Tactics'...might be a good volume to have on hand
Big walk-back from TEPCO executive vice president: We were not aware of the hot water they stepped in. We were just mixing up which reactor was which, no biggie.
Tokyo Electric Causes Confusion over Plant Radiation DataTokyo, March 26 (Jiji Press)--Tokyo Electric Power Co. <9501> caused confusion Saturday when it withdrew an admission that three workers' exposure to high-level radiation at its quake-crippled nuclear power plant earlier this week was avoidable.
Tokyo Electric initially said the company would have prevented the three workers' radiation exposure if it had properly alerted them in the wake of a report that a puddle of highly contaminated water was found in the turbine building of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant's No. 1 reactor last week.
But later on Saturday, the company corrected the announcement and said it was difficult to predict high exposure risks to the workers.
"We apologize for the wrong information," Tokyo Electric Executive Vice President Sakae Muto said at a press conference.
According to the company, it mixed up reactor building radiation data.
(2011/03/27-01:24)
And then the lemmings on here wonder why you can not believe a single word coming out of these guys mouths.
No credibility, no freaking clue how to contain this mess other then lie about it.
Have they not been containing this mess for the past two weeks? If nobody had done anything at all for the last two weeks, would things be different than they are now?
the company's new motto
TEPCO - we're better than nothing
Funny - but sad.
Well, at least they duct-taped plastic bags over the worker's boots. erhm... wtf?!
The good news is that TEPCO finally found someone on the staff who can take charge, kick ass and take names.
The bad news is that he's the head of the legal dept who just got wind that some fool previously told the truth.
BBC reporting radiation levels now 10 million (not a typo) times safe level in water around plant - workers now being evacuated.
oh shit
Kyodo ticker:
NEWS ADVISORY: 10 mil. times normal level of radioactivity in water at No.2 reactor (13:12)Seems like they are talking 1000 mSv/hr on unit number 2...but in the turbine building.
That's a sievert per hour, potentially fatal and definitely debilitating. Without protective gear that is.
Not potential. Fatal in 4 hours without treatment. Fatal in 8 under any and all circumstances (if said radiation makes it into your body).
Ari (or anyone else who has worked in a NPP)have you taken time to go back and read the press relases from tepco since the EQ/Tsunami? It is full of gems like wondering if you have any insights?
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/index-e.html
I brought up the issue of possible partial control rod insertion some time ago, since it is a known potential problem on this type of reactor. But, I never heard anything else about it, so assumed it was one of those things that either got misreported or never happened in the first place. That is the problem with this thing, you get so much conflicting information you just don't know. But, partially inserted control rods are a real problem, especially if you have no water flow...you keep getting some level of fission if they are not inserted to the fail-safe level.
an initial insertion problem was listed in the early TEPCO press releases, but it also said it was fixed FWIW
Kyodo News ticker now turned off/broken. Ditto NHK ticker.
http://english.kyodonews.jp/
The 10 million X figure is still available on this home page.
Here comes the coverup;
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ap_on_bi_ge/as_japan_earthquake
10 million X assuming a basepoint of .1 usievert is about 1 Sievert, right?
Dead man walking starts at about 4 for a 50% chance of certain death, and 8 sieverts is certain death, with no treatment available. Is this correct?
One would hope that protective gear would help. But, you're correct:
"People exposed to very high levels of radiation in a short amount of time are at risk for acute radiation syndrome, which can be fatal. William McBride, professor of radiation oncology at University of California, Los Angeles, says that at a radiation exposure of about one sievert, a person begins to experience sickness after an initial delay of a day or more. The most common symptoms are nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and fever, and the illness often resolves within days.
At higher doses, symptoms become more severe and can lead to long-term health consequences or death. Radiation first affects cells that divide rapidly, including blood cells and the cells lining the gastrointestinal tract. At four or five sieverts, the effects can be life-threatening, and may include a need for a bone marrow transplant, or the use of bone marrow growth factor stimulants to avoid death within two to eight weeks. At higher doses, around 10 sieverts, McBride says, the intestines stop functioning properly, and this may cause death within a few weeks. At even higher doses, blood vessels become leaky and the brain is affected, likely causing death within 24 hours."
http://mobile.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/35128/
your point way above about (paraphrasing) the wear and tear on the front line workers here is a good one. It doesn't appear TEPCO has a deep bench, esp in view of the company's reputation for throwing poorly paid, unskilled workers into plant operations during normal times. One heat, radiation, stress has worn down the engineers and workers with real training and experience, what happens next?
i agree. workers are taking a beating.
1000mSv/hr is bad news, will cause radiation sickness, but if you bug out quick, you may not have permanent damage....but very well may.
NHK discussing on live stream now...
http://jibtv.com/program/fullscreen.aspx
thanks for posting Jim
watched two experts interviewed on NHK link.
I am just blown away. They are still talking about this thing like there are complete, functioning buildings there! It is the twilight zone in Japan media.
They went on to explain the high levels of radiation in the building water and sea water and how to get the pipes working and where source might be and such. The work is difficult for the workers and they have to turn the pumps back on and get water flowing and how each system works. Oh and there is even a fancy drawing they hold up of the "before" picture of the structures!
Are you kidding me? There are 3 buildings destroyed by huge explosions.
Is it at all possible that the cooling pumps/systems can function in those FUBARed reactors?
Actually, it is possible. At least some of the parts of the buildings you see that are destroyed are actually designed to blow away in a hydrogen explosion. I do not know the condition of the important parts, but I know it is not necessarily related to the damage you see in the pics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwNIHQvTOzs
This is from the last tepco press release before unit 3 blew. They claim the govt. told them to relase pressure. Any wonder why it has been so hard to get factual information since then?
Unit 3(Shut down)
- Reactor has been shut down. However, as High Pressure Core Injection System has been automatically shut down and water injection to the reactor was interrupted, following the instruction by the government and with fully securing safety, steps to lowering the pressure of reactor containment vessel has been taken. Spraying in order to lower pressure level within the reactor containment vessel has been cancelled.
- After that, safety relief valve has been opened manually, lowering the pressure level of the reactor, which was immediately followed by injection of boric acid water which absorbs neutron, into the reactor pressure vessel.
http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11031312-e.html
10,000,000 times normal radioactivity @ #2 reactor
NHK news:
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/27_12.html
Extreme radiation detected at No.2 reactor
Tokyo Electric Power Company says it has detected radioactive materials 10-million-times normal levels in water at the No.2 reactor complex of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
The plant operator, known as TEPCO, says it measured 2.9-billion becquerels of radiation per one cubic centimeter of water from the basement of the turbine building attached to the Number 2 reactor.
The level of contamination is about 1,000 times that of the leaked water already found in the basements of the Number 1 and 3 reactor turbine buildings.
The company says the latest reading is 10-million times the usual radioactivity of water circulating within a normally operating reactor.
TEPCO says the radioactive materials include 2.9-billion becquerels of iodine-134, 13-million becquerels of iodine-131, and 2.3-million becquerels each for cesium 134 and 137.
These substances are emitted during nuclear fission inside a reactor core.
The company says the extremely contaminated water may stem from a damaged reactor core, and are trying to determine how the leakage occurred.
University of Tokyo graduate school professor Naoto Sekimura says the leak may come from the suppression chamber of the Number 2 reactor, which is known to be damaged. The chamber is designed to contain overflows of radioactive substances from the reactor.
Sunday, March 27, 2011 13:44 +0900 (JST)
It could come from the torus, but it could also come from the main steam piping that connects the core vessel to the turbine. Either way, it is possible that the core in that reactor has become completely uncovered and is possibly undergoing uncontrolled fission...which seem strange considering their report this morning of reasonably stable vessel conditions.
#2 blew its guts into the drywell a week ago when the pressure release valve failed.
Again, I have seen no published evidence of this.
I am pretty sure you JUST got confirmation ...
It may be confirmation of serious fuel rod damage, but that does not mean the core has melted and fallen into the torus...that would be just a wild ass guess...it is of course, possible, but I like to base my guesses on 20 years of experience and evidence....even if the evidence is suspect.
I said "blew its guts" ... not fall ... when a pressure release valve fails it does not fall ...
#3 is the core that fell into the drywell !
Noted.
As anyone who has ever decided to just go ahead and finish the rest of the bottle knows: There is a huge difference.
lol... /kidding
at the time of the explosion inside #2 there were different reports that I observed. The Japanese tv which was shown on Fox during a Shep Smith show referred to suspected damage to the concrete containment vessel. They had a diagram and pointed to the containment vesslel. However, the TEPCO reports referred to suspected damage to the 'suppression' system, which (and I'm an amateur here) understood to be the torus. But reports of damage were definitely given. I was puzzled since the reports I saw appeared to be referencing different parts of the reactor.
Hey Ari - just wanted to say I've really appreciated your technical contribution to this discussion today. There's been a lot of psuedo experts on here from day one assuring us that there is not much cause for concern and anyone who thinks otherwise is Chicken Little.
Given your obvious technical expertise the comment in your post above that there is actually a possibity that of reactor 2 undergoing uncontrolled fission scares the hell out of me. Might just be the most disturbing comment I've read since the start of this incident.
I second that sentiment. He has kept an even head when I have not. I salute you for that!
Thank you. I am not happy about it either. A spike in radioactivity of this nature has to be taken very seriously. To me, it means a serious degradation in the cladding on the fuel rods....which although serious, if it can be contained, is livable. But, this scenario seems to be dumping in the turbine building, which means it is not contained. There is obviously a serious piping leak in the turbine building, which is trasmitting the events in the core vessel directly into that building. Whether it comes from the torus or the steam piping I do not know....my guess is the steam piping. If I was there, and could do it under the conditions, I would start trying to isolate the reactor buildings from the turbine buildings. There are motor valves that can do that, which can also be manually activated. I am not sure why they would not do that, unless the steam pipe tunnels filled up with water and overflowed into the turbine building basement...but that scenario should not show sudden spikes in radioactivity. It is weird.
We don't know if it's sudden or if they just now got their first data back on this water. I don't think they even sampled it, or noticed it at all, before the workers were injured by it.
Maybe unit 2's been spewing super-strong radionuclides for days. If they have a 3 foot deep, large basement full and it's all this strong it could not happen all that fast. The status report still says the rods are partly or fully uncovered....
Perhaps since 10 days ago ...
Steam piping? !!
10000000 times normal level in the basement water, and you think that came from steam ...
the 10 million was retracted as error.
I just saw that too, but the article also said that levels were 1000 m/sv. Do you know if that figure was calculated using the measurment that was done in error?
Trouble deciphering here...
Airdrop bomblets to take the roof apart, second airdrop shredded tin and boron, third airdrop more of the same in water solution, fourth airdrop more of the same. Start closing in the breakwater like this:
http://www.life.com/image/57028838
On second thought, the fast way to close up the sea is to start sinking barges loaded with cement and scrap metal on top of each other.
Update on Lybia !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There was a Hoax regarding US marines on the ground in Lybia this is not true.
Time to re-set that upper threshold 'safe' limit again?
The TEPCO rules of nuclear klusterfock management: Lie, delay, obfuscate...then admit things are very bad, but go and hook up some useless shit or drop water from helicopters to make it appear that you're on the case.
After all, what could possibly go wrong with nuclear cores? Time is on your side.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2011/03/20113274114783728...
Extremely high levels of radiation were detected in water leaking from reactor two of the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, forcing the evacuation of workers, its operator said Sunday.
A spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power said the level of radiation found in the leaked water was 10 million times higher than it should be for water inside the reactor, indicating damage to the fuel rods.
"We detected 1,000 millisieverts per hour of radiation in a puddle of water at the reactor number two. This figure is 10 million times higher than water usually kept in a reactor," the spokesman said.
"We are examining the cause of this, but no work is being done there because of the high level of radiation.
"High levels of caesium and other substances are being detected, which usually should not be found in reactor water. There is a high possibility that fuel rods are being damaged."
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/workers-evacuated-as-radiatio...
As noted above, they are now saying those figures were an error. But, I'm not seeing anything that tells us what the actual numbers are.
Anybody see any new numbers anywhere?
IT IS NOW SMOKING... so to speak
The company says the latest reading is 10-million times the usual radioactivity of water circulating within a normally operating reactor. TEPCO says the radioactive materials include 2.9-billion becquerels of iodine-134, 13-million becquerels of iodine-131, and 2.3-million becquerels each for cesium 134 and 137.
These substances are emitted during nuclear fission inside a reactor core.
http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/gcce5/radiation_10milliontimes_normal_levels_detected/
I have been told by many 'experts' that fission within the cores is no longer possible at Fukushima, including some resident ZH experts (including some who are either newly registered and/or have never commented on any other subject but this and appear to be from the Josef Oehmen school of Disinformation). Oh, and Dr. Monreal told us all would be fine, as well...
My common sense tells me that "2.9-billion becquerels of iodine-134, 13-million becquerels of iodine-131, and 2.3-million becquerels each for cesium 134 and 137" = something fundamentally bad is happening, but I'm sure all is well, stable, as so forth.
No doubt fission is still possible in the cores...and is obviously going on in an least one of them. Core damage is not a possibility, it is a fact. But, the huge amount of latent heat still going on is also a problem, even in the cores that may not be fissioning.
How do they contain this or even get near the reactors with such high levels, especially of the cesium kind?
It is a problem, no doubt. Getting water in them is key....you have to do that, it will bring the radiation down. Plus, stop the leaks in the turbine buildings...a lot of the key systems going to the reactor buildings come from the turbine buildings. If you are dealing with a high gamma or neutron environment, people simply cannot function there. The Lanthanum is a real problem, since it is one of the highest gamma emitters they will encounter. So far the amounts have been reasonably small, but in a core fission that is open, that could change quickly.
What is Lanthanum?
Thanks for the feeback, Ari.
And they also told you no radiation would reach the US.... right? Those experts. I knew at 2 Am when I saw the news of the Tsunami breaking and the problems with the reactors that this was going to go bad. REally bad. Chalk it up intuition. Not expertise.
I hope that all you "experts" out there that are trying to stop people from talking and sharing information that you all rot in hell. And that KD guy? He takes the cake.
Recriticality can happen, and is a whole different heating mechanism. It would add to the decay heat. It would also heighten the decay heat, and extend the time that the core is dangerously hot (which is measured in months, anyway).
The pressure in unit 2's reactor vessel blew out early on, but the 'stuff' is likely still in there. It makes me wonder if a really big pipe is just broken here. The core could be held in the containment vessel, but the watering is just washing right into the 'basement' or whatever it is.
Depth of water in basement of unit 2 reported to be a meter deep. I bet it's a big basement, too. That is just an amazing amount of radionuclides.
Jim, the "puddles" I am hearing about are in the turbine building, which is in a separate building across a road and connected by the steam pipe tunnel. Are you hearing different?
Ari
Your experienced input is priceless - thanks.
Nobody's mentioned the possibility of earthquake damage to the steam pipes; after all, it's reported that the shockwave was magnitudes of the plant's design brief.
Did they know about brittle-fracturing of steel coolant pipes from radiation exposure when this plant was designed in the 1960s?
I'd also think that most, or all, of the labyrinth of underground service tunnels would have been flooded by the tsunami - maybe including the power distribution systems?
Jim, by 'the watering is just washing right into the basement' are you referring to the seawater they are (presumably) injecting into the reactor itself (vs. spraying from hoses onto the outside of the reactor?
Is it possible that they could be injecting water into the reactor itself with no idea (before now) that it was just running out a hole someplace? That sounds 'out there,' but I guess it might be consistent with the earlier admissions that rods were uncovered. Maybe the water ran out until it fell below the level of the busted pipe. Is that possible?
or outside a reactor core, perhaps, with a nuclear blob doing fission in a crevice beneath a reactor building and the ground water saturated and flowing sideways, just saying, ouch
Time to declare martial law, bring in NRC and USN.
Water leaking from reactor #2's core has been measured to be 10 million times higher than during normal operation, and 1000 times higher than water from reactors 1 and 3:
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/27_12.html
BBC now reporting radiation levels in water from reactor #2 at 10 million times normal - ie 1000 msieverts per hour. A 5 hour exposure to this level of radiation will kill 50% of those exposed to it within one month.
Another risk factor they must consider is a large follow up quake(s). Large quakes often occur in pairs of similar magnitude. So there is the real risk in the short term of there being another sizeable quake.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928043.000-the-megaquake-connect...
TEPCO's short press conference just finished. They said they are testing for plutonium in the soil.
http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/03/fukushima-i-nuke-plant-tepcos-short.html
Something I haven't seen mentioned yet is the fact that this ten million times normal figure now being reported (1000 mSv) was the result of a "pegged out" detector. Upon discovering the high level of radiation the worker simply evacuated rather than adjust the sensitivity of the detector and take another reading. The 1000 mSv reading is probably not accurate. How much higher the actual reading really is is unknown. Also, the detection of Iodine 134 seems to pretty conclusively indicate that nuclear fission is actively taking place. The half-life of Iodine 134 is about 54 minutes I believe, so detection of significant amounts of it means it's been created quite recently.
Edit: http://www.iem-inc.com/toolhalf.html Half-lives of various isotopes...the above link indicates the half-life of I134 is 52.6 minutes. Not good.
Edit II: Can someone more knowledgable tell me if damaged fuel rods in the SFPs could be producing prodigious amounts of I134? If so, the assertion that fission must be taking place might be false.... Anyone?
LEVELS 10 MILLION TIMES ABOVE NORMAL
from http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/27/us-japan-quake-idUSTRE72A0SS20110327
(BTW: CNN has joined Reuters and now has this as their lead story.)
So, what do you think? Is it coincidence that these readings have come out in the very same 24 hours that Greenpeace has begun independent monitoring?
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/makingwaves/from-our-radiation-sampling-team-in-japan/blog/33954
"LEVELS 10 MILLION TIMES ABOVE NORMAL"
I look forward to a new thread on this.
Wonder what the Pollyanna's will say.
Me too :). Also interesting to note that this "ten million times normal" phrase is becoming ubiquitous...but without mentioning the baseline they leave the hearer to assume "normal background radiation" and that is in fact not the case.
The earliest reports stated "ten million times normal radiation levels INSIDE AN OPERATING REACTOR".
I'd say that's a lot different story than ten million times normal background radiation.
I'm sure they're having all kinds of difficulty quantifying things with their sensors either destroyed or lacking electrical power....but their censors seem to be working just fine.
Hey Trav? Whatcha reckon we're up to in Banana Equivalent Doses? Huh?
You reckon eating a half billion bananas per hour will kill you?
"ten million times normal radiation levels INSIDE AN OPERATING REACTOR"
Quite the point really.
Sounds at the very least like a serious "partial" meltdown. If partial is possible in the context.
"You reckon eating a half billion banannas per hour will kill you?"
:)
Pollyana - an excessively or blindly optimistic person.
This was uploaded to YouTube on 26th March. Don't know what time.
Seems genuine. Let's see if the title is proved correct.
"Tokyo Evacuation! Japan meltdown"
@ 6:18 ................
“Look at me. I went to the shops the other day and it rained, and eh, I’ve got red crap all over my face. Yeah, looks like zits but it’s not zits. I haven’t had zits since I was fucking 15 you know. I’m 38 years old. What is this? What is this? What is that? What is that? What is that on my face? And yet they’re telling us everything is just fine.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnvzWrxRFd0&feature=player_embedded#at=59Freak me out...someone, somewhere here on ZH called this one a few days ago.
They said something like "...just wait until we start seeing people uploading youtube videos of their hair falling out.."
...or words to that effect.
If 30-something million people all suddenly begin vacating the greater Tokyo metroplex at once this thing will take on a whole new dimension.
I have to wonder just how much more "news" they can take. The dude in the video is obviously (understandably) distraught.
God help them.
Not saying it's true. But if not the guy is a good actor.
As there is strong daylight in the video then I suspect somewhere between 10 and 2.
But even if not true at some point people will stop believing in TEPCO.
Too many lies. Too much incompetence.
The herd reaction could take on a life of its own.
The fact that the guy is an Australian opens up some interesting cultural speculation ...if "taking the piss" has any relevance. And I don't know that it does..for now I accept the guy as genuine. Just a curious thought that crossed my mind :). (Australia is my home btw)
He seems to have some Asian blood. His accent does not seem to me to be pure Aussie.
One report has TEPCO saying it was an 'error'. They have a new sample but 'don't know' when they'll have new measurement results. Said the high reading was 'not credible' so you wonder if that's an error or just rejected by management.
AP:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110327/ap_on_bi_ge/as_japan_earthquake
If an error it proves yet again that they are not in control (even of the spin).
If not.
God help us all. Not just the Japanese.
How could they make an error like that? Unless they were reading on the wrong scale.
Wow - the plot thickens.
Cannot have news of a confirmed core breach on the day before markets open ...
I seem to remember this same "drill" last Sunday.
Don’t count on TEPCO to produce any real test results. They are more concerned with public panic and will continue to alter data. They can’t even test for plutonium. Someone of a higher authority needs to take over and throw these little blue jump suit lying Japanese aside.
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/27_21.html
TEPCO: Soil samples being checked for plutonium
Tokyo Electric Power Company has asked independent research centers to check if radioactive substances from the Fukushima plant contain highly toxic plutonium.
The company says it expects the results will be available within several days.
The nuclear power plant continues to emit radioactive materials that may include plutonium.
Plutonium is a radioactive element that is produced when uranium fission occurs in a reactor core.
So far, the utility firm has not detected plutonium through its own methods.
It took soil samples from the plant's compound on March 21 and 22 and sent them to the Japan Atomic Energy Agency and the Japan Chemical Analysis Center for examination.
Plutonium is formed at power plants that use conventional uranium fuel. The No.3 reactor of the Fukushima plant uses mixed oxide fuel, or MOX fuel, which contains uranium blended with plutonium extracted from spent nuclear fuel.
Radioactivity from plutonium can be blocked by human skin or paper. But if the substance is inhaled or ingested, it remains in the body for a long time and can cause cancer.
The power company plans to conduct checks twice a week to determine if the plant's soil is contaminated with plutonium.
Sunday, March 27, 2011 22:02 +0900 (JST)
You all have me worried. I am feeling quite real and not a cardboard replica of a human being. I know there are doctors and scientists and artists out there, but there are also people trotting out the same old lies, for example:
"Keep calm, everything is under control."
translation:
"I am about to book a one way ticket to New Zealand"
Anyway, enough humour, have a look at
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=53764737775&topic=15846
for an example of my acerbic scribblings.
Someone on another forum claims Faux (Fox) News claims TEPCO reported that it was an errant reading, and I say bullshit.
Lately, my bullshit meter has been quite accurate.
The release was out there way too long, cited by Japanese Newspapers, and was based upon direct statements made by TEPCO itself.
A TEPCO official even responded in depth as to the causes, and they evacuated all workers.
Yes you would think TEPCO would be very careful with any data it releases given the possible impact of poor data. You would think it would be vetted and check and its own BS meter triggered if it thought a reading suspect. You would also think they would not release data they thought was wrong.
My BS meter is starting to get suspicious and I wonder about the trillions of Yen floating the market and am thinking they are trying to keep things positive enough to allow 'their' mates to all sell out in a rising market before truth becomes known in full.
I have dug a little deeper:
If one checks out
http://www.oceanexpert.net/viewMemberRecord.php?&memberID=17294
one will see:
------------------------------------------------------
Research Activities of Mr Trond KVERNEVIK include
Survey and mapping of terrestrial and marine ecosystems with focus on Malaysia. Have mapped marine parks of west Malaysia. Extensive field research conducted in relation to impact assessments and environmental economics of proposed or existing hydropower schemes in SE Asia.
------------------------------------------------------
Perchance Mr Trond-Inge Kvernevik has actually been working, or hopes to work, on the environmental impact of a nuclear power station in Malaysia?
Guardian article regarding the reading:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/27/japan-nuclear-error-radiatio...
But even TEPCOs new statements should not give anyone any confidence:
The initial report said the worker who made the measurement, carried out on a pool of water in the reactor's basement turbine building, had fled before taking a second reading.
The worker's discovery prompted another evacuation at the site, halting work to pump and store radioactive water that has built up in the turbine buildings of three of the plant's six reactors.
Tepco later said the pool of water had been contaminated with radiation, but the extremely high reading was a mistake.
"The number is not credible," a spokesman, Takashi Kurita, said. "We are very sorry." Kurita said officials were taking another sample to get accurate levels, but did not know when the results would be announced.