The confusion and half-good news of yesterday's were all just lies. For some reason politicians just do not know how to talk straight and say: "citizens, we have a big mess in our hands". No: they have to lie once and again while reality exposes them as the liars they are.
Right now there are officially two meltdowns ("partial meltdowns" in official speech) at Fukushima I power plant, in reactor 1 (the one which exploded) and reactor 3 (which is fed by a mixture of plutonium and uranium, making it even more dangerous). Reactor 2, located between the others, was also having cooling problems since the tsunami as far as I can tell.
According to eco-social watchdog site Florida Oil Spill Law (right now I am unable to connect to it but I have been able to read part of its news via the feed) there is a 6th reactor which has lost cooling. That means that there are other five reactors with major problems, three of which are the ones at Fukushima I but the rest must be from Fukushima II or some other power plant (there was a third one affected by the earthquake and tsunami but I cannot recall the name at the moment).
Again, via FOSL, I can read that the NISA (a US nuclear agency) declared that the explosion at reactor 1 of Fukushima I could only have been caused by the reactor itself and not any hydrogen buildup as it was claimed.
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| Fukushima I - reactor 1 |
Above: the best image I have seen so far of reactor 1 after the explosion. According to the official information that reactor is still intact and only the outer casing exploded. However it is difficult to believe considering how damaged the building is.
Besides Japan and other East Asian countries, the USA is also closely monitoring the situation because the prevailing winds are likely to send the radioactive cloud across the Pacific Ocean into North America. Anyhow, as I mentioned earlier, when Chernobyl exploded the resulting radioactive cloud flew around the World several times, so no part of the Northern Hemisphere, is really safe from the effects of this catastrophe, even if the bulk of the impact should be concentrated in Japan.
Update: Radiation levels 400 times normal at tsunami-hit Miyagi Prefecture. While there is a nuclear plant there, the electricity company claims that this one is stable and that radiation must have some other source (source - via FOSL, now again accessible).
Update: reactor no. 2 to have sea water injected too. The whole plant is therefore out of control (as this is the last resort "cooling" method - reactors 4, 5 and 6 were not operative at the time of the tsunami). Source: Reuters, via FOSL.
Update: Sare Antifaxista reports that the Onagawa plant has also been put under emergency state because of the high radiation levels detected (see two updates above).
Update: EuroNews reports of yet another nuclear power plant facing serious problems: Tokai II. This plant is closer to Tokyo than others. Overall there are four nuclear plants under emergency procedures, though the exact situation of each is not well known because the authorities are issuing information very sparingly.
Update: Radiation levels 400 times normal at tsunami-hit Miyagi Prefecture. While there is a nuclear plant there, the electricity company claims that this one is stable and that radiation must have some other source (source - via FOSL, now again accessible).
Update: reactor no. 2 to have sea water injected too. The whole plant is therefore out of control (as this is the last resort "cooling" method - reactors 4, 5 and 6 were not operative at the time of the tsunami). Source: Reuters, via FOSL.
Update: Sare Antifaxista reports that the Onagawa plant has also been put under emergency state because of the high radiation levels detected (see two updates above).
Update: EuroNews reports of yet another nuclear power plant facing serious problems: Tokai II. This plant is closer to Tokyo than others. Overall there are four nuclear plants under emergency procedures, though the exact situation of each is not well known because the authorities are issuing information very sparingly.
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