• mainichi

• 12:30: Status of the Fukushima I station:^[15]
• 13:55: Radiation reading at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Station (NPS) border is 15 µSv/hour.^[16]

• Time: NA 17 US Navy crew members exposed to radiation On March 14, 2011, 17 U.S. Navy crew members responded to the crisis in Japan and were exposed to radiation in the atmosphere. The crew members thoroughly washed themselves with soap and hot water to reduce contamination. At this point, no illnesses have been reported. If they were to become sick they would have suffered vomiting, diarrhea and possibly skin rashes immediately following contact
• Time: 3/14-3:00 AM Event: Unit 3 meltdown complete??
• Time: 3/14-6:10AM Event: Unit 2 explosion heard http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/196272/3/Explosion-Rocks-Fukushima-Reactor-No-2-Workers-Evacuate an explosion has been heard at Unit 2 of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant. agency spokesman speaking Tuesday on national television said the explosion was heard at 6:10 a.m. (2110 GMT).
• Japanese officials said earlier Monday that the nuclear fuel rods appear to be melting inside all three of the most troubled nuclear reactors. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Monday: "Although we cannot directly check it, it's highly likely happening http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/196272/3/Explosion-Rocks-Fukushima-Reactor-No-2-Workers-Evacuate
• http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T111002003221.htm Oct 3 story: Examination of seismometer shows explosion was probably only at unit 1, not unit 2
• Time: 3/14-10:22AM Event: Unit 4 fire Event: Dangerous radiation levels. Yukio Edano, the chief cabinet secretary, says: "As of 10.22am, we are talking about radiation levels that can damage human health." "The further you can get away from the plant, the safer it is." Mr Edano said that the No. 4 reactor at the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex was currently on fire http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8380277/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-13.html
• Time: 11:05J 2:05U Mr Kan say that radiation readings from the reactor is "very high" and everyone within the 12 mile radius of the No 2 plant must evacuate. Everyone within a 12 mile to 18 mile radius should remain indoors, he says.
• Time: 11:39 02:39 NHK reports that the fire at the No. 4 reactor will carry the radiation up to 18 miles away. Anyone within 18 miles of the plant should brush themselves down thoroughly - hair, clothes, skin - before going inside. Once inside, wash thoroughly. Shut the windows and turn off air conditioning
• Event: Unit 3 explosion Time: 11:15 JST the envisaged explosion of the building surrounding reactor 3 of Fukushima 1 occurred, due to the ignition of built up hydrogen gas.The outer building containing reactor Unit 3 at Fukushima I is severely damaged by an explosion, assumed to be due to the ignition of built up hydrogen gas.
• No health risk is reported, though 600 people are ordered to stay indoors. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano reports that "The vessel containing the number 3 reactor’s radioactive core is intact after yesterday’s blast", and that while the outer reactor building of Unit 3 at Fukushima I is badly damaged, the inner containment vessel is believed not to have been breached. TEPCO later confirms that at least four employees and two contractors were injured in the blast.
• Hydrogen explosion at reactor 3 blows up spectacularly, sending mushroom cloud and large square roof panel about 1000 ft high. Blast is much larger than "Mail Call" blast of about 1 ton of explosives that was perhaps 200 ft high.
• Forbes: Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the possibility of a significant radiation leak after the second blast is small. The building surrounding the vessel containing the No. 1 reactor exploded on March 12.
• There is never any official analysis or assesment of the damage from TEPCO or the government. Author's analysis: The blast destroys refueling level walls and roof, and much of the adjoining building to the north. The east wall crane pillars are bent, the west wall pillars are fallen down to the ground level. Nearly all of the walls below the top level on the west side are blown out, as are many of the massive vertical pillars. The overhead crane tracks are destroyed, and the central roof trusses have collapsed over the level from the still high east wall to tthe fallen west all. The roof is completely gone at the south section, the section bebetween the center line and sfp is mangled, while there is a "dragon" tail section bent outwards from the northwest corner. The northwest corner of the building is gone, as the reactor fitting cap is sitting on a collapsed portion of the floor. Steam rises from the center of the refueling level from the edges of the reactor well which is not clearly visible in any picture. The equipment pool is dry, with the gate/wall to the reactor well clearly visible. A steam cloud streams out of the gap between the gate and the collapsed crane beam.
• CBS commenter says that unit 3 damage looks like Chernobyl which had its main reactor building destroyed, but underneath the debris, the reactor containment levels were said to still be relatively intact.
• Although it is believed there was just a hydrogen explosion with no radiation release, it it later found that the explosion had spread plutonium over site as it was the only reactor with this element in its fuel.
• injured 11 - seven plant workers and four military personnel. It came as authorities were trying to use seawater to cool the complex’s three reactors....In some ways, the explosion at Unit 3 was not as dire as it might seem. The blast actually lessened pressure building inside the troubled reactor, and officials said the all-important containment shell - thick concrete armour around the reactor - had not been damaged. In addition, officials said radiation levels remained within legal limits, though anyone left within 20km of the scene was ordered to remain indoors. “We have no evidence of harmful radiation exposure,” deputy Cabinet secretary Noriyuki Shikata said.
• 11 are injured in blast. No deaths are reported on this day but...
• It is later reported April 7 that six soldiers from the Japanese Central Nuclear Biological Chemical Weapon Defence Unit who arrived at the reactor in two vehicles at the time of the blast are instantly killed, buried under flying concrete, but this is later removed from article and later account is that they all survived. Japan tsunami: Fukushima Fifty, the first interview The Telegraph Thursday 07 April 2011
• Time: 3/15-11:00 AM Prime Minster Kan announces emergency, people inside 20KM evacuate, 30KM remain indoors.
• Time: 3/15-11:01 AM Event: Unit 3 explosion
• TEPCO plant status: At approximately 11:01am, Mar 14th, an explosion followed by white smoke occurred at the reactor building of Unit 3. It was believed to be a hydrogen explosion. Ian Goddard later believes it matches a steam explosion when fuel leaks from reactor pressure vessel onto containment floor which has pool of water
• Four of five fire (engine) pumps for unit 2 were feared to have been damaged after an explosion at neighboring unit 3
• Damage: 4 Injuries: Self-Defense Force personnel who had been helping with the water injection work. There were concerns about the level of radiation exposure of the injured persons, but apparently the danger was not serious. Two large-sized SDF armed tanks and one small-sized automobile were damaged in the explosion. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 231-233). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.
• Youtube: world's dirtiest hydrogen explosion Uploaded by voltscommissar on Mar 14, 2011 The Fukushima Daiichi No.3 explosion looks a LOT dirtier than the No.1 explosion two days earlier. In this de-colorized but contrast-enhanced silent movie, the mushroom cloud is dark, nothing like the translucent shock wave seen in No.1 The building explodes in a flash then the dirty mushroom thrusts rapidly upwards. It contains large chunks of debris. Near the ground white clouds of water vapour or pulverized concrete spread rapidly towards buildings 2 and 4 Japanese nuclear engineers and government regulators must immediately explain why this explosion is so different in colour, shape and ferocity if it is allegedly only a "hydrogen" explosion. Boy, they sure make those brittle reactor vessels tough if they can remain intact whilst venting all that hydrogen and steam, then being surrounded by such a monstrous explosion. Are we really expected to believe that the aperture where the hydrogen/steam was venting from the reactor vessel somehow magically welded itself shut during the explosion? "Pig's arse!" is a famous Australian expression of disbelief applicable to PR spin situations like this.
• 11 workers were injured and transported to Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station after explosive sound and white smoke were confirmed around the Unit 3. One of the injured workers got medical treatment on March 16th, but the worker reported a flank pain. We required to the offsite center that the worker should be transported to the hospital. After that, the helicopter of JSDF arrived and transported the worker to the FUKUSHIMA Medical University Hospital at 10:56AM http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11031704-e.html
• time: 11:04 AM Home Satellite Image Shows Damage to Reactor Buildings at Fukushima Daiichi Complex After Explosions Damage to the top of the reactor building for Unit 1 as well as damage to the reactor building for Unit 3 following the explosions can be seen (see figure 1). Steam can be seen venting out from the reactor building for Unit 3. UPDATE: ISIS has learned that the satellite image in Figure 1 was taken approximately three minutes after the explosion at the reactor building for Unit 3. According to the Tokyo Electric Power Company, the explosion at the reactor building for Unit 3 occurred at approximately 11:01AM local time. According to DigitalGlobe, the image was taken at 11:04 AM local time. Taken so soon after the explosion, the plume seen extending out across the water is likely smoke or dust from the explosion (see figure 1).
• Time: 3/14-11:01AM Event: Ground Self-Defence Force Team caught in explosion June 7, 2011 GSDF colonel recounts fearing for life in Fukushima reactor blast Kyodo A Ground Self-Defense Force officer who was nearly killed by one of the hydrogen explosions... "I thought that if it was a bad blast, we would not survive it," said Col. Shinji Iwakuma, leader of the GSDF's Central Nuclear Biological Chemical Weapon Defense Unit. The March 14 blast at the No. 3 reactor injured four of Iwakuma's men just as the six-member team was preparing to spray water onto the crippled reactor.. was experienced in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, Iwakuma, 49, said that a mission requiring the cooling of an out of control reactor was an "unforeseen" scenario... headed out to the No. 3 reactor with five men in three vehicles, was about to open the door of his car when the hydrogen explosion occurred at 11:01 a.m. ...The thundering explosion and accompanying blast wave sent concrete and radioactive debris soaring about 70 meters into the air, obscuring his view in a cloud of gray dust, the colonel said. "I think the debris fell for several dozen seconds, but it felt like it was for a very long time," Iwakuma said. after managing to get out of his car, he noticed that his men were injured, dragging their legs or holding their arms tightly.

  The dosimeter they had with them was giving off readings of about 20 millisieverts at the time. (how much after the explosion??)

  .. was not informed of possibility of explosion... "would be reluctant to send my men there"

• Time: 11:44AM<: Radiation reading at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Station (NPS) border is 20 µSv/hour.^[15]
• Time: 3/14-1:25PM the rcic cooling functions in Unit 2 also failed. The water level in the reactor core began to fall and venting was begun. The pressure soon went down, but the water level, too, for some reason also continued to go down, so seawater injection was begun here as well. That night, one more vent was opened to release gas, but late that night for some reason, the two vents closed again. source: Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 205-208). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.
• Time: 3/14-12:24J 03:24U Hamish MacDonald, a reporter for Australia's Ten Network, tweets: "Hearing hundreds of displaced people in camps inside #Fukushima exclusion zone are telling their families not to risk coming to get them."
• Time: 3/14-12:19pm J 03:19U Jon Snow, reporting from Japan for Channel Four, tweets: "We are evacuating frm Sendai Japan after further nuke blast fukushima we moving north Japan PM on radio says 'don't panic'."
• CNN's Kyung Lah is doing the same: "Moving north of Sendai now." Twitter reports say most networks are pulling out of the region over safey concerns.

• time: 05:06PM A no-fly zone has been set for an 18 mile-radius above the Fukushima nuclear plant, the Kyodo news agency reports. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8382436/Japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-as-it-happened-March-14.html
• Time: 6:00PM 18:00 (approximate): The water level in reactor 2 falls to the top of the fuel, starting meltdown process.[17] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Fukushima_I_nuclear_accidents#13_March
• Time: 3/14-7:30PM 19:30JST Reactor 2 water level indicators were reported to be showing minimum-possible values
• Time: 3/14-8:00PM Event: Unit 2 core damage start Unit 2 reactor core damage starts
• Time 3/14-8:30PM/20:30: Status of the Fukushima I station:^[16]
• Time: 3/14: 11:00PM 23:00JST, the 4 m long fuel rods in the reactor were fully exposed for the second time.
• 12:30: Status of the Fukushima I station:^[15]
• 13:55: Radiation reading at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Station (NPS) border is 15 µSv/hour.^[16]
• 20:30: Status of the Fukushima I station:^[16]
• Time 9:00 PM = 21:00 (approximate): Fuel rods within reactor Unit 2 of Fukushima I are found to be fully exposed to air (but are still within the intact containment vessel and therefore not exposed to the outer atmosphere). TEPCO earlier said the cooling system had been lost and began injecting seawater into the reactor in a desperate attempt to cool it down.^[17]
• 21:08: The IAEA announces the temperature in the spent fuel pond of reactor Unit 4 is 84 °C^[11]
• Time: 10:07PM There was an increase of radiation dose at site boundary measured at the monitoring post of Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station. Accordingly, at 10:07pm Mar 14th and at 12:35am Mar 15th, it was determined that that a specific incident stipulated in article 10, clause 1 (Increase of radiation dose at site boundary) has occurred.
• Time: 9:16PM = 21:16: Yukio Edano affirms that Reactor 2 of Fukushima I is now unlikely to explode, due to the ongoing work to cool down the reactor.^[18]
• Time 11:20PM = 23:20 (approximate): The fuel rods at Reactor 2 of Fukushima I become fully exposed once again. TEPCO explains that pressure inside the reactor rose again because the unit's air flow gauge had been accidentally turned off, blocking flow of water into the reactor and leading to full exposure of the rods.
• 8:06 P.M. news agencies on Friday evening reported a third explosion at the Fukushima Daichi nuclear plant, this time at unit 2. Kyodo News, quoting Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, reported that the reactor's pressure-suppression system may be damaged. Elevated Radiation readings of 8,217 microsievert per hour were recorded near the plant, per a Tepco announcement reported by Kyodo. UPDATED 9:18 a.m. -- Tokyo Electric Power confirmed that fuel rods in its Fukushima Daichi unit 2 reactor recently were fully exposed to air, which makes it the the third reactor at the company's plant facing potential core damage. Tepco reported the reactor's coolant boiled off after a fire pump injecting seawater into the core ran out of diesel, according to Kyodo News. Four of five fire pumps were feared to have been damaged after an explosion at neighboring unit 3 last night. This morning, Tepco reported it had raised the water level in unit 2 to cover half length of the fuel rods, according to a Reuters report shortly before 9 a.m. The status of water injection into unit 1 and unit 3 remained unclear following the earlier blast, which reports indicated injured 11 but did not damage core containment.
• Event: 45 Hospital patients die Families want answers after 45 people die following evacuation from Fukushima hospital On the early morning of March 14, a health and welfare office in Minami-Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, which is designated as a site for radiation screening, received a list of residents who needed to be rescued from the Prime Minister's Office by fax. The list mentioned Futaba Hospital. Shortly afterwards, about 130 patients and workers that the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) had rescued from the hospital arrived at the office by bus. Most of them were bed-ridden or suffering from dementia and appeared in poor condition. They were not accompanied by hospital employees and no medical records on them were available. Kenji Sasahara, 45, a doctor and deputy head of the health office, screened the evacuees for radiation. At 2 p.m., the patients were transported to an evacuation shelter at Iwaki Koyo High School in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, by bus. Although the direct distance between the health office and shelter was about 70 kilometers, the bus was forced to take a detour to avoid coming close to the crippled nuclear power station, and spent nearly six hours before arriving at the shelter. ...two of them were already dead and others had had incontinence, with their intravenous lines disconnected. The school has no medical equipment..
• Date: March 15 Time 3:00 AM or 4:00 AM Event: TEPCO wants to pull out. Kan: "Withdrawing from the plant is out of the question"

  src

  the Kan government essentially left the handling of the nuclear crisis
  in the crucial first three days to Tepco, focusing instead on relief
  efforts for the hundreds of thousands left homeless, Mr. Terada and
  other aides said. Then on March 14, the gravity of the plant’s
  situation was revealed by a second explosion, this time at Reactor No.
  3, and a startling request that night from Tepco’s president, Masataka
  Shimizu: that Tepco be allowed to withdraw its employees from the
  plant because it had become too dangerous to remain. 
  
  When he heard this, Mr. Kan flew into a rage, said aides and advisers
  who were present. Abandoning the plant would mean losing control of
  the four stricken reactors; the next day, explosions occurred at the
  two remaining active reactors, No. 2 and No. 4. 
  
  “This is not a joke,” the prime minister yelled, according to the
  aides. 
  
  They said Mr. Kan convened an emergency meeting early on March 15,
  asking advisers what more could be done to save the reactors. Then he
  gave Tepco barely two hours’ warning that he planned to visit the
  company. 
  
  At 5:30 a.m., Mr. Kan marched into Tepco headquarters and stationed
  one of his most trusted aides, Goshi Hosono, there to keep tabs on the
  company. 
  
  Mr. Kan gave a five-minute impromptu pep talk, said his aide, Mr.
  Terada. 
  
  “Withdrawing from the plant is out of the question,” Mr. Kan told
  them. 
  
  ...the placement of Mr. Hosono in Tepco was a turning point, helping
  the prime minister to take direct control of damage-control efforts at
  the plant. “For the first time, we knew what Tepco was debating, and
  what they knew,” said one adviser, who asked not to be identified.
  

  Kan: “At around 3 a.m. March 15, three days after the accident, I got a report from then Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda that Tokyo Power Corp. was about to withdraw from the nuclear facility.”

  “I thought nuclear plants were safe as they were supported by Japan’s technology. But I changed my mind after the experience of the March 11 disaster.” “”When I think of safety not being outweighed by risk, the answer is not to rely on nuclear.”

  Source: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/japans-ex-pm-naoto-kan-feared-uninhabitable-tokyo-report/story-e6frg6so-1226130844919

  http://www.canetalk.com/2011/03/1300936887_1300932214.shtml TEPCO wanted to withdraw all nuclear plant workers 3 days after quake Posted by JAC on 3/23/2011, 10:21 pm http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110318p2a00m0na009000c.html

  Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) told the government on March 14 that it wanted to withdraw all of its workers from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, it has been learned.

  TEPCO's suggestion came two days after a cooling system failure caused by the March 11 quake and tsunami triggered a hydrogen blast at the plant's No. 1 reactor. Though Prime Minister Naoto Kan rejected the proposal, the finding suggests that the power company was aware from an early stage that damage at the plant could develop into a nuclear disaster exposing workers to high levels of radiation. It is believed that TEPCO was prepared to let Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military handle the situation.

  Several government sources said that TEPCO officials told Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano and Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda over the phone that the company wanted to withdraw all of its workers. Both government officials turned down the requests and reported them to Kan.

  Shortly after 4 a.m. on March 15, Kan summoned TEPCO President Masataka Shimizu to the Prime Minister's Office and told him pulling out was not an option. He added that a joint countermeasures headquarters would be set up.

  Afterwards, the prime minister visited TEPCO's head office in Tokyo and said, "This is not a matter of TEPCO going under; it's about what will become of Japan."

  Government officials confirmed that TEPCO's suggestions on the night of March 14 indicated the company wanted to pull out all of its workers.

  At the same time complaints are smoldering within TEPCO over Kan's response. TEPCO officials said that the company has 4,000 to 5,000 workers at the plant, including those from cooperating firms, but now only about 300 remain. They are working to control and restore power-generation stations.

  "Saying, 'I won't allow you to pull out,' is like saying, 'Get exposed to radiation and keep going until you die,'" one member of the company commented.

·         Japan Nuclear Watch: New Explosion at Fukushima Daiichi Unit 3 6:49PM shows a dark plume rising hundreds of feet in the air, a bad sign if there is significant radiation involved

·         after multiple cooling system failures, the water level in the Unit 3 reactor vessel dropped 3 meters (nearly 10 feet), uncovering approximately 90 percent of the fuel in the reactor core. Authorities were able to inject cooling water with a fire pump after reducing the containment pressure by a controlled venting of radioactive gas. As they did with Unit 1, they began pumping sea water into Unit 3 … the water level in the Unit 3 reactor still remains more than 2 meters (6 feet) below the top of the fuel, exposing about half the fuel to air, and they believe that water may be leaking from the reactor vessel. Tokyo Electric is reporting there are three persons injured and seven person missing. [Update: they've reportedly been found] BBC says there may be 11 persons missing. At this point, we don’t have any indication of the damage done to Unit 3 reactor, but utility/govt officials are claiming the reactor vessel was not damaged. As for the building housing the reactor, before/after images captured by Jim White indicate this latest explosion blew the roof and walls off the reactor building. See below.

·         The plant operators have been struggling with the loss of the cooling system and a resulting rise in pressure in the reactor. They have been injecting sea water, using fire pumps, to sustain at least some cooling and may have attempted another controlled release to relieve the rising pressure. new explosion appears to have caused substantially more external damage to the outer building than the first explosion. The NYT also reports the same thing.

·         new explosion appears to have caused substantially more external damage to the outer building than the first explosion. The NYT also reports the same thing.

• Image: http://my.firedoglake.com/scarecrow/files/2011/03/Capture.jpg

Date: March 15, 2011 Tuesday

Day 5: Kan says no TEPCO pullout / Reactor 2 melts down, explodes damaging supression level / Reactor 4 fuel rod fire and explosion

from: http://fukushima-diary.com/2011/10/bn-heli-rad-survey/
The map on the bottom is made by Mr.Hayakawa,from Gumna uni,who is a specialist of volcanic ash.

Map shows tan plume 4:00-12:00 cruising by Tokyo
Map shows red plume creating dark red northwest patch 18:00-25:00 after midnight
http://bos.sagepub.com/content/67/5/27.full
It appears that the wind was blowing in a northwesterly direction when the largest on-shore releases occurred. These releases apparently occurred on March 15.7

March 15, four days after the accident, an additional 354,000 people living between 20 and 30 kilometers of the plant were advised to stay indoors to reduce exposure to radiation (Japanese government,

Timeline:

• Event: Kan orders TEPCO to not abandon the nuclear plant Kyodo news agency reported that Naoto Kan also ordered Tokyo Electric Power Co on Tuesday not to pull employees out of the Fukushima plant
• Time: 3/15-12:30AM At 00:30 JST on 15 March, NHK ran a live press conference with TEPCO stating that the water level had sunk under the rods once again and pressure in the vessel was raised. The utility said that the hydrogen explosion at Unit 3 might have caused a glitch in the cooling system of Unit 2: Four out of five water pumps being used to cool the Unit 2 reactor had failed after the explosion at Unit 3. In addition, the last pump had briefly stopped working when fuel ran out.[168][169] To replenish the water, the contained pressure would have to be lowered first by opening a valve of the vessel. The unit's air flow gauge was accidentally turned off and, with the gauge turned off, flow of water into the reactor was blocked leading to full exposure of the rods.
• Time: 3/15-1:30AM unit 2 water level dropped to bottom and fuel rods completely exposed
• As of 04:11 JST on 15 March, water was being pumped into the reactor of Unit 2 again.[170]
• Time: 3/15-6:10AM explosion heard at unit 2. Pressure in suppression chamber falls from 300 to 100 kPA. Then water rises again to 30% of rod high and containment pressure at 500 kPa, suppression chamber/torus is probably damaged. While admitting that the suppression pool at the bottom of the containment vessel had been damaged in the explosion, causing a drop of pressure there, Japanese nuclear authorities emphasized that the containment had not been breached as a result of the explosion and contained no obvious holes.[180] In a news conference on 15 March the director general of the IAEA, Yukiya Amano, said that there was a "possibility of core damage" at Unit 2 of less than 5%.[181] The Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) stated 33% of the fuel rods were damaged, in news reports the morning of 16 March
• Time: 3/15-5:40 to 6:00 AM Event: Unit 4 Explosion
  a loud explosion was heard from within the power station. Afterwards, it was confirmed that the 4th floor rooftop area of the Unit 4 Nuclear Reactor Building had sustained damage. " link The event is not caught on camera. The black roof surface is in place, but will be blown off by March 17. Unit 4 isn't even operating, it is only storing "warm" fuel in its storage pool, but there is no power for cooling.
• Time: 3/15-9:38AM Unit 4 fire reported as flames break out on fourth level of building.
• Time: 3/15-10:00AM radiation measured 400 msv/hr on inland side of Unit 3, 1000 is enough to cause radiation sicknes.
• Time: 3/15-11:00AM Unit 4 fire dies down by 11:AM leaving 8 square meter hold in the wall.
• Event: Unit 4 explosion photos released href="http://www.setyoufreenews.com/2011/03/tepco-releases-photo-of-no4-reactor.html?amp"> Photo shot on tu released on wed by Tepco shows a large portion of the building's outer wall has collapsed. Shot from the northwestern side of the reactor, shows that a large portion of the building's outer wall has collapsed. There is an 8-meter hole on the 4th floor, and the interior is visible. Another 8-meter square hole was also confirmed on the outer wall of the building. Both appeared after an explosion early on Tuesday.
• time 3/15-5:40AM event: Explosion Unit 4 blows out walls
  http://my.firedoglake.com/scarecrow/2011/03/15/japan-nuclear-watch-wed-a-m-new-fire-and-explosion-at-unit-4-fuel-pond/ Japan Nuclear Watch, Wed. am JST: New Fire and Explosion at Unit 4 Fuel Pond By: Scarecrow Tuesday March 15, 2011 2:25 pm About 5:40 a.m. Wednesday morning, their time, officials reported a fire and explosion that blew a hole about 8 meters wide in the walls of the Unit 4 building. The location corresponds to the 4th floor area where the spent fuel storage pools are located. There is reportedly a hole in the building roof, as a result of yesterday’s explosion and fire, and authorities considered using helicopters to dump or inject water from the roof. However the hole is apparently not near enough to the fuel rod pools to make an aerial drop effective.
• Time: 3/15-6:12AM Event: Unit 4 ezplosion shows up on seismometer http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T111002003221.htm
  the panel studied a seismometer at the plant and found only one explosion tremor recorded at 6:12 a.m. that day. Based on analysis of the tremor, the panel concluded that the explosion occurred at the No. 4 reactor.

• Event: Unit 4 photo shows fueling crane is exposed to air:
  The moment nuclear plant chief WEPT as Japanese finally admit that radiation leak is serious enough to kill people Saturday, March 19, 2011 setyoufree
  Exposed: this shots shows a gaping hole in the building of reactor number four.The green crane circled, is normally used to move spent fuel rods into a 45ft deepstorage pond, just out of shot But the pool has now boiled dry and the spent rods areheating up and releasing radiation It comes after pictures emerged showing overheating fuel rods exposed to the elements through a huge hole in the wall of a reactor building at the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant.

• Date: 3/15/2011 Time 12:12J 03:12U To recap, here is the latest AFP update: Edano later said there was also an explosion which started a fire at the number-four reactor. Although the number-four reactor was shut for maintenance when the quake and tsunami struck last Friday, "spent nuclear fuel in the reactor heated up, creating hydrogen and triggered a hydrogen explosion". He said radioactive substances were leaked along with the hydrogen. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html
• 18.10 A pump technician at the Fukushima plant tells Associated Press that he was in the complex when Friday's earthquake hit. Speaking at an evacuation centre wit his 4-month-old baby, Shoma, he says: I worry a lot about fallout. If we could see it, we could escape, but we can't.
• Date: 3/15/2011 Time: 3:00PM Event: Kaieda disclosed TEPCO planning to abandon nuclear plant, Kan visits plant

  He explained the reason why he went to TEPCO headquarters on March 15, 2011, 4 days after the accident, was the words from Former Minister of METI Banri Kaieda around 3pm on the same day, who disclosed TEPCO was planning to abandon Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Energy Plant

  Kan felt “If TEPCO abandons Fukushima Daiichi and Daini Nuclear Energy Plant, 10 nuclear reactors and 11 nuclear fuel storage pools, nuclear reactors and nuclear fuel storage pools would be empty and rapidly melt down. ” , then he ordered to set up the Integrated Headquarters Measures of TEPCO and government at TEPCO headquarters.

  “If TEPCO had abandoned Fukushima Nuclear Energy Plant, there would have been nobody in Tokyo. It was the most critical moment for Japan as a country to keep surviving as it is. The amount of radiation leakage could have been more than several score times than Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident.” , Kan explained and this experience changed his old idea of being confidence in Japanese nuclear technology into the new idea to aim not to rely on nuclear power plant energy society.

  source: http://houseoffoust.com/group/?p=2919

• Time: 6:26PM=18.26 Report from the BBC's Chris Hogg in Tokyo who says there are now believed to have been four blasts at Fukushima. The fourth reportedly occured in reactor four, where spent fuel rods are stored, he says http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html
• Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said two workers were missing after blasts at the facility a day earlier blew a hole in the building housing the No. 4 reactor.
• 20.39 Sky News is reporting (quoting Reuters) that two workers are missing from reactor four since the explosion there at 6am local time on Tuesday. The roof of that reactor is cracked and has led to a spike in radiation.
• later: 21.59 Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) has denied that two missing plant workers from reactor four went missing after Tuesday's explosion and insisted that they have been lost since the earthquake and tsunami struck Fukushima.
• Reactor 4 has explosion and fire in spent fuel rod pool, releasing radioactive materials into the air. The rods are stored in water to keep them cool, but pumps have no power. It is thought that a hydrogen explosion started the fire, which was extinguished.
• "The report also suggests that a fourth explosion at the site in the early days after the quake may have occurred in the spent fuel pool at reactor No. 4 and may have scattered some pieces of uranium pellets around the site between the buildings. Workers may have bulldozed dirt over the radioactive pieces in an attempt to contain the radiation, the report said." LA Times
• Damage to temporary cooling systems on unit 2 by the explosion in unit 3 plus problems with its venting system meant that water could not be added, to the extent that unit 2 was in the most severe condition of the three reactors.^[39]
• Explosion at Unit 2 in the "pressure suppression room" containing the supression torus / donut caused some damage to unit 2’s containment system.
• Radiation levels at the plant rose significantly but subsequently fell back. equivalent dose> rates at one location in the vicinity of unit 3 recorded 400 millisieverts per hour.
• Date: 3/15 Time: 8:00PM /20:00 Event: Unit 2 meltdown complete. (101 hrs after earthquake) mainichi.jp
• 21.51U A further fire has broken out at Fukushima plant, according to local media, althought it is not clear which reactor is affected. Flames are visible from what is reported by the BBC as reactor four. Tepco has confirmed that another fire has broken out. href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html">21.59
• 22.49U New reports from Sky saying that the "new" fire at reactor 4 took hold because the first fire (and explosion) from Tuesday morning local time was never properly extinguished. AP reports: Utility says new fire at Japan nuclear reactor erupted because first one was not extinguished.
• 21.46U CNN correspondent Gary Tuchman tweets: Large snowstorm right now in the Japanese tsunami zone. It couldn't have come at a worse time for the homeless and the rescuers. href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html">21.59
• 21.40U Japan's nuclear safety committee say radiation levels of 400 millisieverts an hour had been recorded near Fukushima's No.4 reactor earlier today. Exposure to over 100 millisieverts a year is a level which can lead to cancer. The workers who have stayed behind to cool the reactors are being hailed as heroes. href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html">21.59

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2011/s3164723.htm Well it was the starkest language that we've heard yet from the government. What emerged that we didn't know was that there had also been an explosion and a fire in reactor 4 at Fukushima. Number 4 had an explosion as well and then a fire which is what was revealed in that press conference. Yes, number 4 was not in operation at the time of the earthquake. There were no active fuel rods in there but there is spent fuel. Now the fire apparently started through a similar hydrogen explosion that we saw in number 1 and 3 and that the chief cabinet secretary said that they have assumed that some radioactive substances are being released as a result of that explosion and fire at number 4. "Explosion at No 4 Fukushima reactor" http://sherriequestioningall.blogspot.com/2011/03/pictures-of-reactor-4-and-3-upclose.html Pictures of Reactors 4 and 3 upclose after explosions - I captured off Live Japan News Shows shattered Reactor 4 building. SPENT FUEL STORAGE POND ON FIRE AT REACTOR 4
Fukushima Nuclear Accident Update Log Updates of 7 April 2011 Tue Mar-15-11 05:27 AM Response to Reply #8 13. Fire confirmed Japan Earthquake Update (15 March 2011, 06:15 CET) Japanese authorities informed the IAEA that there has been an explosion at the Unit 2 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. The explosion occurred at around 06:20 on 15 March local Japan time. Japanese authorities also today informed the IAEA at 04:50 CET that the spent fuel storage pond at the Unit 4 reactor of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is on fire and radioactivity is being released directly into the atmosphere. Dose rates of up to 400 millisievert per hour have been reported at the site. The Japanese authorities are saying that there is a possibility that the fire was caused by a hydrogen explosion.

divvy (547 posts) Tue Mar-15-11 07:13 PM explosions are not good Reports of explosions are not good... No kidding. The zircolloy reaction of clad melting gives off a lot of hydrogen, which can accumulate in the top of the reactor vessel. Such a bubble of explosive gasses is very dangerous. Large scale fuel failure is probably happening at multiple plants. My guess is that the explosions are from hydrogen vented from the vessel. That is a sign of fuel clad "melting." Core melting doesn't necessarily mean that the worst case scenario will result... It didn't at TMI. As long as they can prevent reactor vessel failure, the impact on the general public can be minimized. I know the GE Mark I plant had design provisions for pumping seawater into the reactor... I don't know if the other plant designs did. I haven't heard what resources are being brought in to help plant personnel. They need help... Not just advice! What is being done to restore power to these stricken plants? ... And when will they have it? No plant, even one originally in cold shutdown, can operate indefinitely without AC power. I guess I am frustrated to hear of casualties... People can't go into primary containment under these circumstances. Venting should be to primary containment, which could then be vented through a standby gas treatment system in the RX building, if there is AC power to run it. That could be where the hydrogen explosion occurred. The system has a heater that wouldn't be good with an explosive mix of hydrogen. PWRs actually have glow plugs or some type of heaters to burn hydrogen inside their much larger containments. BWRs don't have these systems. The Mark I containment could not accommodate open flames... too small.

·  Last Defense at Troubled Reactors: 50 Japanese Workers By KEITH BRADSHER and HIROKO TABUCHI Published: March 15, 2011

• five workers died since quake
• 22 workers injured
• two missing (later found killed by tsunami and quake)
• one hospitalized grasping chest unable to stand
• another treated after blast of radiation near reactor
• 11 injured in #3 hydrogen explosion (not counting 7 killed nearby)
• normal crew is 10-12 people per reactor
• only 50 left onsite, there were 750 emergency people on site.
• 28 died from radiation exposure at Chernobyl within 3 months, 19 by infections from radiation skin burns, 106 developed radiation sickness
• two of the medical evacuees died in the early hours of March 15. The principal even appealed for assistance on a local FM radio station, saying, "Help us!" At the time, about 90 patients and four hospital workers as well as police officers and Self-Defense Forces (SDF) members were at the hospital. The crisis at the nuclear plant was only growing worse, and a GSDF rescue team never came to rescue them. Following an explosion at the nuclear plant, SDF members remaining at the hospital left there after telling staff, "We must go back." At around 1 a.m. on March 15, police officers urged hospital staff to evacuate, saying, "You have no choice but to leave here." In response

• Tokyo radiation 10 times normal, but no worries
• Fuel pool no. 4 may be boiling or dry
• Workers kept away from high radiation levels
• Helicopter mission called off due to high radiation
• US advises 50 mile evacuation zone, and military bases
http://bos.sagepub.com/content/67/5/27.full
The following day, immediately after the plume of radioactive contamination shown in Figure 1 was deposited, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), fearing the worst, advised US citizens living within 50 miles (80 kilometers) of the plant to evacuate (Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2011a).9 This naturally created a quandary for Japan’s government: Although only about 300 Americans lived in Fukushima Prefecture,10 two million Japanese lived within a 50-mile radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (see Table 2).

On April 7, during an NRC staff briefing to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards, a committee member challenged the NRC staff on this evacuation recommendation: [L]et me reverse this. Thirty-two years ago, if Japan would have done a what-if calculation about Three Mile Island, and said all the Japanese within 50 miles of Harrisburg should get out, what would be our response to that, from a policy standpoint? (NRC, 2011b: 91–92)

He could also have noted that 17 million people—including most of the population of New York City—live within 50 miles of the Indian Point Nuclear Power Station on the Hudson River (Donn, 2011).11

Timeline:

• Date: 3/16/2011 Event: American officials, including the ambassador to Japan, John V. Roos, informed their Japanese counterparts that the United States would advise its citizens to evacuate an area 50 miles around the plant — much larger than the 18-mile voluntary evacuation zone then established by Japan. The Americans also began voluntary evacuations of nonessential personnel at their bases, src
• the existence of a nationwide Japan system of radiation detectors known as the System for Prediction of Environmental Emergency Dose Information, or Speedi. Mr. Terada and other advisers said they did not learn of the system’s existence until March 16, five days into the crisis.src
• NHK: White plumes started rising from the reactor on Wednesday morning. Tokyo Electric Power Company says the vapor was steam caused by water evaporating from the reactor's storage pool for spent fuel rods, which is heating up. In an effort to avert the fuel rods' exposure, a Self Defense Force CH47 helicopter took off from the Sendai base hauling a large container of water on Wednesday afternoon. But the plan was aborted after radiation levels above the plant were found to have largely exceeded 50 millisieverts - the maximum permissible for SDF personnel on a mission. http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2011/03/nuclear-crisis-radioactive-fue.html http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110316D16JF060.htm 3/16: it is feared the reactor may have released radioactive steam due to damage to its containment vessel.
• The National Police Agency is considering using a special water cannon truck held by the Metropolitan Police Department to cool a pool storing spent fuel rods at the troubled No. 4 reactor at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, police sources said Wednesday. The operation could start as early as Wednesday night, they said. http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2011/03/nuclear-crisis-radioactive-fue.html
• The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released data showing that on Tuesday and Wednesday, the temperature in pond 4 was 84C - way above normal, and about 25C higher than the equivalent ponds in buildings 5 and 6. What made the situation concerning the fuel pond in building 4 seem particularly serious was Wednesday's statement from Tepco saying: "The possibility of re-criticality is not zero". This meant that in the company's view, it was possible that enough fissile uranium was present in the cooling pond in enough density to form a critical mass http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12773350
• 23.17 TimeOutTokyo tweets that public broadcaster NHK reported: The possibility of a hydrogen explosion is high following a fire outbreak at reactor four (7.50am, March 16)
• Event: Japan and US nuclear agencies believe Unit 4 pool may be dry: Japan Unit-4 Pool’s Heat Exceeded Three-Times Normal, IAEA Says By Jonathan Tirone - Mar 18, 2011 2:40 AM PT Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said yesterday there is a possibility there’s no water at the cooling pool. If exposed to air, the fuel rods could decay, catch fire and spew radioactive materials into the air. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko said in Congressional testimony March 16 that unit had no water in its cooling pool, which sits in a side chamber above the reactor’s core. A hydrogen explosion inside the core’s containment chamber may have drained the pool, which is supposed to keep radiation in check by covering the rods with 15 meters of water.

  In Japan, statements had said that the water in the pool was “boiling” and the water level had “considerably decreased,” but there had been no report that the water was completely gone. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 259-260). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.

• TEPCO releases photo of No.4 reactor behind wreckage of #3, shows partially collapsed top north edge and missing panel
• NHK: Tokyo Electric Power Company has released a photograph of the No.4 reactor building at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant where fires were reported on Tuesday and Wednesday. It shows that a large portion of the building's outer wall has collapsed. The company produced the photo at a news conference on Wednesday (16). The photo, shot the day before (tu 15) from the northwestern side of the reactor, shows that a large portion of the building's outer wall has collapsed. There is an 8-meter hole on the 4th floor, and the interior is visible. Another 8-meter square hole was also confirmed on the outer wall of the building. Both appeared after an explosion early on Tuesday.
• Time: 5:45am Event: Unit 4 Fire: Fire occurrence at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Unit 4 At approximately 5:45 am, a TEPCO employee discovered a fire at the northwest corner of the Nuclear Reactor Building while transporting a battery to the central control room of Unit 4 of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. TEPCO immediately reported this incident to the fire department and the local government. In addition, TEPCO also contacted related parties about this incident and began immediate preparations to extinguish the fire.
• Time 6:15AM Event: Unit 4 Fire Gone: However, during an inspection at approximately 6:15 am, TEPCO staff found no signs of fire. The area will be kept under strict surveillance.
• 22.26 Another official tweet from Noriyuki Shikata Deputy Cabinet Secretary for Public Relations: At 5:45 am a fire broke out at No. 4 reactor of Fukushima No. 1 power plant--TEPCO...Residents staying in the radius of 20 km and 30 km from Fukushima Daiichi are requested to stay inside the houses or buildings. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8384853/Japan-earthquake-as-it-happened-March-15.html
• Satellite photo shows black roof still on unit 4 It's gone the next day showing roof ribs. "Damage to the Unit 3 reactor building from an explosion can be seen as well. Steam can still be seen emitted from the top of the damaged building. The angle of this new image, however, shows what appears to be more extensive damage to the Unit 3 reactor building than can be seen in previous satellite imagery."
• Officials in Tokyo said radiation in the capital was 10 times normal at one point but not a threat to human health in the sprawling high-tech city of 13 million people.
• 16 March: At approximately 14:30 on 16 March, TEPCO announced its belief that the fuel rod storage pool of unit 4—which is located outside the containment area^[44]—may have begun boiling, raising the possibility that exposed rods could reach criticality.^[45]
• By midday, NHK TV was reporting white smoke rising from the Fukushima I plant, which officials suggested was likely coming from reactor 3. Shortly afterward, all but a small group^[46] of remaining workers at the plant had been placed on standby because of the dangerously rising levels of radiation up to 1 Sv/h.^[47][48]
• TEPCO had temporarily suspended operations at the facility due to radiation spikes and had pulled all their employees out.^[49]
• A TEPCO press release stated that workers had been withdrawn at 06:00 JST because of abnormal noises coming from one of the reactor pressure suppression chambers.^[50]
• Late in the evening, Reuters reported that water was being poured into reactors 5 and 6.^[51]
• NaturalNews: in addition to the fires that are damaging the working reactor, these .... spent fuel bundles could [now] be on fire. This vastly compounds the problem of any meltdown, as this spent fuel will add to the contamination [because] it is extremely toxic....these reactor buildings were basically dirty bombs waiting to be set off by a [natural] disaster.
• Furitsu From: Katsumi Furitsu
  Date: March 16, 2011 8:24:38 AM EDT
  

The following are some updates:

#The smoke/seam from reactor No. 3:

The company said that the smoke/steam from the reactor No. 3 came from the spent fuel pond (not from a possible leak from the containment).

The cooling system of the pond is out of order and the temperature of the water is getting higher to make steam. As you know, the building of this reactor already is broken down and there is no cover/ceiling over the spent fuel pond. It is open to the air now.

Then, they are planning to drop sea water from helicopters and fill the pond with water to stop the damage of spent-fuel rods.

A team of “Defense Force” started the training to do the task. They are ready to start now.

However, the radiation level over the pond is still high. It was measured “far more than 50 mSv/h”. (They actually measured it by a helicopter.) So, they decided not to pursue this operation today. There is no guarantee that the radiation level would become lower tomorrow, though. (The government has decided yesterday to set up the maximum exposure level at an emergency situation from 100 to 250 mSv, as I wrote you yesterday.)

#The reactor No. 4:

The government has just ordered the “riot police” to go to the site as they have a special car which has a “high pressure injection system”. (I do not know the proper words for such a car in English. I suppose a car which might be usually used against “riot”….or sometimes against a demonstration, as some of you might know?) They will try to fill the spent fuel with water using the special car. The defense force will lend protective suits to the “riot police”. They will start to work tomorrow morning.

#The result of the radiation level measurement today:

Today, a team from the Ministry of Education and Science, measured around the 20-60 km zone:

about 20km: 0.33 mSv/h

30-60 km: 0.0253 – 0.0125 mSv/h

The government and media emphasized, “the level is not a immediate danger for the people’s health, though it might be problem to live in such area continuously for a year.”





Transport of high capacity pumps from US to Fukushima. 17 March 2011.

• 17 March: During the morning, Self-Defense Force helicopters dropped water four times on the spent fuel pools of units 3 and 4.^[52] In the afternoon it was reported that the unit 4 spent fuel pool was filled with water and none of the fuel rods were exposed.^[53] Construction work was started to supply a working external electrical power source to all six units of Fukushima I.^[54] Starting at 7 pm, police and fire water trucks with high pressure hoses attempted to spray water into the unit 3 reactor.^[55] Japanese authorities informed the IAEA that engineers were laying an external grid power line cable to unit 2.^[2]
• divvy Thu Mar-17-11 05:28 AM 55. helicopter drops ineffective? from NHK news... Helicopter drops seem to be ineffective. They measured 3782 microseverts/hr of radiation before the water drops and 3752 microseverts/hr of radiation after the water drops. They are preparing to spray the sites with water from the ground. The third reactor's spent fuel pools are evaporating quickly and that is why they dumped so much water on it the first time. They said the pool has 2000(?!) tonnes of water in it and each drop was 7.5 tonnes. Reactor 4s spent fuel pool still has water in it which is why they focused their efforts on reactor 3's spent fuel pool.

[edit] Second week

• 18 March: Tokyo Fire Department dispatched thirty fire engines with 139 fire-fighters and a trained rescue team at approximately 03:00 JST. These included a fire truck with a 22 m water tower.^[56] For the second consecutive day, high radiation levels had been detected in an area 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) northwest of the damaged Fukushima I nuclear plant. The reading was 150 microsieverts per hour.^[57] Japanese authorities upgraded INES ratings for cooling loss and core damage at unit 1 to level 5 and issued the same rating for units 2 and 3.^[2] The loss of fuel pool cooling water at unit 4 was classified as level 3.^[2] In a 24-hour period ending at 11 am local time, radiation levels near the plant had declined from 351.4 to 265 ?Sv/h, but it was unclear if the water spraying efforts were the cause of the decrease.^[58]
• 19 March: A second group of 100 Tokyo and 53 Osaka firefighters replaced the previous team. They used a vehicle that projected water from a height of 22 meters for cooling spent nuclear fuel storage pool inside the reactor of unit 3.^[59][60] Water was sprayed into the reactor for a total of 7 hours during the day. TEPCO reported afterward that the water had been effective in lowering the temperature around the spent fuel rods to below 100°C.^{[61][verification needed]}

Date: March 17, 2011 Thursday

• Helicopter water dump operation on unit 3
• Fire trucks spray water on unit 3
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12773350
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released data showing that on Tuesday and Wednesday, the temperature in pond 4 was 84C - way above normal, and about 25C higher than the equivalent ponds in buildings 5 and 6. Thursday's entry for building 4 reads: "no data" - possibly because instruments monitoring the pond had been destroyed by heat. It appeared that cladding around some of the fuel rods had been damaged - possibly by fire.

day 7 in japans nuke delemma conspiracy blog has claims of radiation sickness in Japan already

video: US Drones Confirms Exposed Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Fuel Rods RAW VIDEO

After watching the helicopter effort on TV, Kazunori Hasegawa, president of Chuo Construction, calls the government and offers the use of his two truck-mounted concrete boom pumps to spray water directly into the reactors. TEPCO did not respond for three days, and then stated it would wait until for the arrival of similar pumps obtained elsewhere.[41]

Timeline:


• Time: 9:48AM-10:00AM Event: CH-47 Chinook helicopter water dump On March 17, helicopters of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Forces carried out an operation in which seawater was sprayed on the damaged reactor at Unit 3 from above. According to the Defense Ministry, the operation had been initially planned for March 16 but postponed because of high-levels of radiation directly above the plant. A four-helicopter squadron conducted the operation, with one of the helicopters measuring the radiation level. It was then determined that each helicopter could hover over the plant for up to 40 minutes. Another helicopter directed the operation and two others carried out the operation, taking two turns each, and dumping a total of 30 tons of seawater. The operation began at 9:48 a.m. and was concluded at 10:00, ending in just 12 minutes. The 19 SDF personnel involved in the operation were exposed to 1 mSv of radiation. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 261-267). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.
• The BBC has video footage of the helicopters dumping water onto the reactor, and the overriding impression it gives is that most of the water misses because the helicopters - in order to steer clear of the radiation - are flying too high.
• Clouds of steam had been seen issuing from the pool storing spent fuel rods in reactor 3, indicating they were boiling off water used to keep the rods cool. The helicopters have been fitted with lead plates to shield crew members from radiation during their mission, according to NHK. http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2011/03/nuclear-crisis-radioactive-fue.html
• Time: 10:00AM Event: High radiation around 3 and 4: observed 400mSv/h at the inland side of the Unit 3 reactor building and 100mSv/h at the inland side of the Unit 4 reactor building.(1000mSv is enough for radiation sickness, enough for 2 or 10 hr exposure for sickness)
• Time: 10:55AM Event: Satellite image shows Unit 4 Roof blown back by another explosionISIS Reports New Satellite Image of Fukushima Nuclear Site From March 17, 2011 The roof of the Unit 4 reactor building appears different than it did in the March 16, 2011 image. While the paneling on the roof of the building appears intact in the March 16, 2011 image, it appears that only the skeleton of the roof frame is left in the March 17, 2011 image. While it is possible that the varying angles of the images is affecting the appearance, the difference appears significant enough to indicate a structural change. It is unclear how the roof structure changed. With only a skeleton frame on the roof, it may be easier to deliver water to the spent fuel pond in Unit 4 from above. [There is no report of a second explosion at unit 4]
• Time: 10:56AM Event: Worker transported by JSDF helicopter to Fukushima hospital One of the injured workers got medical treatment on March 16th, but the worker reported a flank pain. We required to the offsite center that the worker should be transported to the hospital. After that, the helicopter of JSDF arrived and transported the worker to the FUKUSHIMA Medical University Hospital at 10:56AM http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/press/corp-com/release/11031704-e.html
• Time: 7:00PM Starting at 7 pm, police and fire water trucks with high pressure hoses attempted to spray water into the unit 3 reactor.[40] a Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department riot squad water cannon truck and SFD fire extinguishing vehicles arrived at the plant and began aiming hoses spraying a total of 44 tons of water at the Unit 3 spent fuel pool. The following day the Tokyo Fire Department Hyper Rescue squad arrived, and from before dawn on March 19 began operations resulting in spraying of more than 2,400 tons of water over 13.5 hours. SDF fire squad Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 269-272). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition. Other links
• JAPAN 8.9 QUAKE WORST IN ITS HISTORY
• JAPAN QUAKE-TSUNAMI-NOW RADIATION LEAK ON SITE-QUAKE CONTINUING STORY
• DAY 3 AFTER THE JAPAN QUAKE-TSUNAMI
• DAY 4 IN JAPAN THE 2ND EXPLOSION AND RADIATION LEAKS
• DAY 5 IN JAPAN NUKE SITUATION
• DAY 6 IN JAPANS NUCLEAR UNSETTLEMENT
• DAY 7 IN JAPANS NUCLEAR NIGHTMARE
• DAY 8 IN JAPANS RADIATION SITUATION
• DAY 9 IN JAPANS SERIOUS SITUATION

Date: March 18, 2011

Millions of people in Tokyo continued to work from home, some fearing a blast of radioactive material from the complex, 240 km (150 miles) to the north, although the International Atomic Energy Agency said radiation levels in the capital were not harmful. That is little solace for about 300 nuclear plant workers toiling in the radioactive wreckage. They are wearing masks, goggles and protective suits whose seams are sealed off with duct tape to prevent radioactive particles from creeping in.

source: Japan weighs need to bury nuclear plant; tries to restore power March 18, 2011 reuters http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2011/03/japan-weighs-need-to-bury-nuclear-plant-tries-to-restore-power/ http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2011/03/18/japan-weighs-need-bury-nuclear-plant-tries-restore-power/

Tokyo Fire Department dispatched thirty fire engines with 139 fire-fighters and a trained rescue team at approximately 03:00 JST. These included a fire truck with a 22 m water tower.[42]

Japan Unit-4 Pool’s Heat Exceeded Three-Times Normal, IAEA Says By Jonathan Tirone - Mar 18, 2011 2:40 AM PT Temperatures in a cooling pool at the crippled Japanese nuclear plant have exceeded three times normal values, causing radiation to leak directly into the atmosphere and complicating efforts to stop three reactors from melting down, the UN Atomic Energy Agency reported. The pond at reactor No. 4 covering uranium fuel rods at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant heated to 84 degrees Celsius (183 Fahrenheit) the last time data was available on March 13, the IAEA said today on its website. Temperatures normally should be kept below 25 degrees Celsius, according to the agency

Other Ponds Hot Temperatures in fuel ponds at units No. 5 and 6, also loaded with uranium fuel assemblies, exceeded two-times normal values, the IAEA said. Unit 5’s temperature rose to 65.5 degrees Celsius from 64.2 degrees Celsius yesterday afternoon. Unit 6’s temperature fell 0.5 degree to 62 Celsius.

Electricity could be restored Friday or Saturday to recover the lost cooling functions at the No. 2 reactor building, which he said takes priority over other the troubled reactors as it cannot be doused since the roof of its building is still intact. http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2011/03/18/radiation-slightly-down-around-fukushima-reactor/

---

Date: March 19, 2011

The moment nuclear plant chief WEPT as Japanese finally admit that radiation leak is serious enough to kill people Saturday, March 19, 2011 setyoufree
• After Tokyo Electric Power Company Managing Director Akio Komiri cried as he left a conference to brief journalists on the situation at Fukushima, a senior Japanese minister also admitted that the country was overwhelmed by the scale of the tsunami and nuclear crisis.
• Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said: 'The unprecedented scale of the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, frankly speaking, were among many things that happened that had not been anticipated under our disaster management contingency plans. 'In hindsight, we could have moved a little quicker in assessing the situation and coordinating all that information and provided it faster.'
• prime minister Naoto Kan insisted that his country would overcome the catastrophe. 'We will rebuild Japan from scratch,' he said in a televised speech: 'In our history, this small island nation has made miraculous economic growth thanks to the efforts of all Japanese citizens. That is how Japan was built.' Exposed: this shots shows a gaping hole in the building of reactor number four.The green crane circled, is normally used to move spent fuel rods into a 45ft deepstorage pond, just out of shot But the pool has now boiled dry and the spent rods areheating up and releasing radiation It comes after pictures emerged showing overheating fuel rods exposed to the elements through a huge hole in the wall of a reactor building at the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant.

  Radiation is streaming into the atmosphere from the used uranium rods at reactor number four, after a 45ft-deep storage pool designed to keep them stable boiled dry in a fire. And some of the radioactive material could reach Britain within a fortnight, according to experts.

Date: March 20, 2011

SDF fire squad trucks began spraying water into the pool at Unit 4 on March 20. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 272-273). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.

Date: March 22, 2011

In the afternoon of March 22, it was announced at Tokyo Electric’s headquarters that radioactive materials up to 126 times the safety level had been detected in seawater samples taken on March 21 near a drainage outlet at the Fukushima No. 1 plant. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 404-405). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.

Date: March 23, 2011

On the 23rd, the MEXT took samples about 30 kilometers offshore and detected radioactive cesium 10,000 times the normal amount. In the basements of the turbine buildings of Units 1, 2 and 3, too, stagnant water with high-level radioactivity was discovered. At Unit 2, the level of radioactivity was extremely high, at 100,000 times the water in a normal nuclear reactor, and the contaminated water included technetium, a substance that would not be detected unless the fuel rods had melted. At Units 1 and 3, water radiation was 10,000 times the usual level. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 405-409). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.

Date: March 24, 2011

TEPCO Video on crane looking into reactor 4 as water is pumped.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpZnOdFSR-I&feature=related

Date: March 25, 2011

FAILURE OF VENT SYSTEM TO SAFELY RELEASE HYDROGEN LED TO BLAST, NO. 2 VENTED BY OPEN PANEL
U.S. Experts Blame Fukushima 1 Explosions and Radiation on Failed Venting System By PETER BEHR AND JOHN J. FIALKA see @@Hydrogen Explosion

Date: March 27, 2011

On the 27th, polluted water was found to have accumulated in trenches outside the reactor buildings, and seemed about to overflow at any time. Takahashi, Mariko; Katsuda, Toshihiko (2011-09-25). Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster: What Happened in March 2011 (Kindle Locations 409-410). The Asahi Shimbun. Kindle Edition.

TEPCO UNDERPREDICTED MAXIMUM EARTHQUAKE, TSUNAMI HEIGHT
Fukushima Tsunami Plan: Japan Nuclear Plant Downplayed Risk YURI KAGEYAMA and JUSTIN PRITCHARD 03/27/11 04:47 PM ET while TEPCO and government officials have said no one could have anticipated such a massive tsunami, there is ample evidence that such waves have struck the northeast coast of Japan before – and that it could happen again along the culprit fault line, which runs roughly north to south, offshore, about 220 miles (350 kilometers) east of the plant. A TEPCO reassessment presented only four months ago concluded that tsunami-driven water would push no higher than 18 feet (5.7 meters) once it hit the shore at the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex. The reactors sit up a small bluff, between 14 and 23 feet (4.3 and 6.3 meters) above TEPCO's projected high-water mark, according to a presentation at a November seismic safety conference in Japan by TEPCO civil engineer Makoto Takao. However, the wall of water that thundered ashore two weeks ago reached about 27 feet (8.2 meters) above TEPCO's prediction. The flooding disabled backup power generators, located in basements or on first floors, imperiling the nuclear reactors and their nearby spent fuel pools.

...As early as 2001, a group of scientists published a paper documenting the Jogan tsunami. They estimated waves of nearly 26 feet (8 meters) at Soma, about 25 miles north of the plant. North of there, they concluded that a surge from the sea swept sand more than 2 1/2 miles (4 kilometers) inland across the Sendai plain. The latest tsunami pushed water at least about 1 1/2 miles (2 kilometers) inland. The scientists also found two additional layers of sand and concluded that two additional "gigantic tsunamis" had hit the region during the past 3,000 years, both presumably comparable to Jogan.

TEPCO's latest calculations were started after a magnitude-8.8 subduction zone earthquake off the coast of Chile in February 2010. ...TEPCO's tsunami modelers did not judge that, in a worst-case scenario, the strong subduction and coupling conditions present off the coast of Fukushima Dai-ichi could produce the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that occurred. Instead, it figured the maximum at 8.6 magnitude, meaning the March 11 quake was four times as powerful as the presumed maximum.

New Aerial Video of Fukushima w/ Analysis 3/28/11 Expert believes crane #3 has collapsed on fuel rods, identifies yellow reactor cap

Date: March 28, 2011

Event: Massive leaks of radioactive water from unit 2: http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2011/03/18/radiation-slightly-down-around-fukushima-reactor/
Radiation in seawater from No. 2 reactor may be spreading further north The contaminated water, discovered last Thursday, has been emitting radiation that measured more than 1,000 millisieverts per hour in a recent reading at No. 2 reactor—some 100,000 times normal amounts, plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said. ...Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano repeated Monday that the contaminated water in No. 2 appeared to be due to a temporary partial meltdown of the reactor core. ... He called it “very unfortunate” but said the spike in radiation appeared limited to the unit. ... However, new readings show contamination in the ocean has spread about 1.6 kilometers further north of the nuclear site than before. Radioactive iodine-131 was discovered just offshore from Nos. 5 and 6 reactors at a level 1,150 times higher than normal, Hidehiko Nishiyama, a spokesman for the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, told reporters Monday. ....Closer to the plant, radioactivity in seawater tested about 1,250 times higher than normal last week and climbed to 1,850 times normal over the weekend. Nishiyama said the increase was a concern, but also said the area is not a source of seafood and that the contamination posed no immediate threat to human health

Complete Chronological Analysis Of Fukushima Reactor 1 - 3 Data Submitted by Tyler Durden

With TEPCO unwilling (or unable) to disclose consolidated detailed information about the status of its reactors, the task has fallen on third party analysts. Luckily, Jorge Stolfi of the state university of the State University of Campinas in Brazil, has compiled what is probably the most comprehensive data dump of all key Fukushima reactor indicators including water level, core, drywell and torus pressure, as well as temperature at the core bottom and nozzle. Below are the detailed results for each of the fuel loaded reactors since the start of the crisis.

Reactor 1



Reactor 2



Reactor 3



Date: March 29, 2011

CLOUD SHOT PLUTONIUM FUEL 100 FT IN AIR MAKING WORSE THAN CHERNOBYL
(note: this is one of the wilder assessments, no one else confirmed this conjecture) If my assessment is correct, the dark colored cloud we witnessed, that was shot approximately 1,000 feet into the air, contained the MOX core and made this accident worse than Chernobyl. See march 14 - world's dirtiest hydrogen explosion
from: http://www.c-ville.com/index.php?cat=141404064431134&z_Issue_ID=12682803113175975&ShowArticle_ID=12682803113795838 comment by The Rad RiderMarch 29th 06:36am later quoted across internet: Study the close up views of the 3 reactor explosion and you will see that the blast was not the type of explosion one would expect from the ignition of hydrogen. The fireball seen in the corner of the plant may have been due to hydrogen but it was much too small to cause the main blast. Not only that, inspection reveals that this was a directional blast. Much as if a cannon had been fired straight up from inside the reactor building. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwNIHQvTOzs This is what one would expect if the reactor dome exploded with enough force to take out the removable concrete pads covering it. Injecting sea water into the molten core caused an immediate explosion of steam. If the temperature of the reactor vessel had reached critical temperature, it would not have had the integrity required to withstand this dramatic increase in pressure. If my assessment is correct, the dark colored cloud we witnessed, that was shot approximately 1,000 feet into the air, contained the MOX core and made this accident worse than Chernobyl. I also suspect that the 1 and 2 reactor vessels have lost their integrity due to the same process. The so called experts that have been downplaying the seriousness of this accident, have an agenda other than disseminating the truth. It is long past time for the world's leading scientists to speak up and show the discrepancies in the current story. It is also long past time for news reporters to do the basic research required, before publishing erroneous and misleading details in their stories.

Date: March 31, 2011

WSJ: DISASTER PLAN FOR FUKUSHIMA A TOTAL JOKE Japanese Plant Had Barebones Risk Plan Mar. 31 (Wall Street Journal) TOKYO—Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s disaster plans greatly underestimated the scope of a potential accident at its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, calling for only one stretcher, one satellite phone and 50 protective suits in case of emergencies. (For hundreds of workers!!!) Disaster-response documents for Fukushima Daiichi, examined by The Wall Street Journal, also contain few guidelines for obtaining outside help, providing insight into why Japan struggled to cope with a nuclear crisis after an earthquake and tsunami devastated the facility.

Date: April 1, 2011

Misplaced trust: 30-foot tsunami wall didn't save Japanese village By Paula Hancocks, CNN April 1, 2011 2:37 a.m. EDT One hundred years ago a tidal wave wiped the village out and is believed to have killed 90% of its residents. This time it was supposed to be different but the force of the water bulldozed a path through one part of the wall and simply came over the top of it in other parts destroying everything in its path. .. In Iwate prefecture, 96% of the boats were destroyed, ruining the fishing industry

##April 3, 2011

JAPANESE CAPTAIN SETS SAIL INTO TSUNAMI TO SAVE HIS BOAT Defiant Japanese boat captain rode out tsunami By Paula Hancocks, CNN April 3, 2011 3:19 a.m. EDT "When the tsunami came, everyone ran to the hills. But Sugawara ran to his boat and steered it into deeper waters. "I knew if I didn't save my boat, my island would be isolated and in trouble," he tells CNN. As he passed his other boats, used for fishing abalone, he said goodbye to them, apologizing that he could not save them all. Impact of Japanese disaster Searching for Japan's missing Japan mourns unidentified victims 30 ft wall couldn't stop second tsunami Then the first wave came. Sugawara says he is used to seeing waves up to 5 meters high but this was four-times that size"

Date: April 5, 2011

UPDATE, 4:30 pm Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Japan’s NHK TV is reporting that a plant worker at Fukushima Daiichi says that radiation levels inside the reactors buildings of Units 1-3 are “immeasurable”—so high that their radiation monitors have been rendered useless. The report states that levels of 10 rems/hour (100 msv) have been measured even outside the buildings.

Universities come through in monitoring for radiation. The amount of radioactive material reaching Washington and the rest of the West Coast from Japan's crippled nuclear reactors is dropping off sharply — but you'd be hard-pressed to know the details if you relied on government agencies for your information. By Sandi Doughton Seattle Times science reporter "A team at the University of Washington rigged up a detection system as soon as it became clear the Japanese reactors were damaged. Unlike some agencies, they have shared their full results with the public — including the newest measurements that show levels are now a tenth of what they were on March 20, when concentrations of radioactive material peaked in Seattle. "It's starting to drop below our threshold for detection," said Michael Miller, UW research associate professor of physics. " chart shows amounts peaked 9 days after earthquake, now barely detectable from University of Washington, and much smaller than Chernobyl effects as measured in Seattle.

Date: April 6, 2011

Inside report from Fukushima nuclear reactor evacuation zone
reads 106usv south of the plant, got within 1.5 km of plant

Since then, residents have left their homes, and the "no man land" has been out of touch with the rest of the world. A Japanese journalist, Tetsuo Jimbo, ventured through the evacuation zone last Sunday, and filed the following video report. He says that, inside the evacuation zone, homes,building, roads and bridges, which were torn down by Tsunami, are left completely untouched, and the herd of cattle and pet dogs, left behind by the owners, wonders around the town while the radiation level remains far beyond legal limits. On Russia today

Suprisingly low to 10 km certain point then it gets high. No police, no power

URANIUM HITS WEST COAST
http://www.llrc.org/: EPA RadNet Air Filter report EPA data shows Fukushima Uranium in California Elevated levels of Uranium have been found in air samplers (filters) operated by US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the north Pacific. Recent data for the Mariana Islands (2800 km south of Fukushima) Hawaii, California and Seattle have been found in the RADNET EPA website. The graph left has been created from the very limited data provided. It shows that uranium (and probably also therefore plutonium) particles have been or are being released by the Fukushima catastrophe. They are appearing in California some 8000km away at levels which are greater than background. (article posted April 20 on April 6 data)

FROM http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=115x289512 The increasing trend with proximity to Japan suggests that Japan is far more heavily contaminated than any of these sites, as we have predicted. It is of the greatest concern that no data on uranium and plutonium have been published by the authorities there.

Date: April 7, 2011

7.1 EARTHQUAKE KNOCKS OUT POWER TO HIGASHIDORI REACTOR, EVACUATE FUKUSHIMA 3:15 pm, Thursday, April 7, 2011. Today’s earthquake (which we have seen variously reported as between 7.1 and 7.9 in magnitude) has knocked out power in some sections of northeast Japan. The single-unit Higashidori Boiling Water Reactor and the Rokkasho reprocessing plant have lost offsite power and are running on emergency diesel generators. Offsite power may also have been lost to the three unit Onagawa nuclear complex, although there is a report that power remains for the reactors themselves, but not for the fuel pools and that those are relying upon emergency diesel generators. UPDATE, 12:30 pm, Thursday, April 7, 2011. A 7.1 earthquake struck northeast Japan about an hour ago (11:30 pm Japan time); workers were temporarily evacuated from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear site. There are no immediate reports of additional damage at the site.

Date: April 11, 2011

LOW LEVEL RADIATION CAMPAIGN
swollen lymph nodes and sores in their nostrils. These are indicators that they have probably inhaled particles of Plutonium and Uranium.

http://www.llrc.org/indexpage.htm: Monday 11th April 2011 1st paragraph updated 12th April Advice for the people of Japan Large areas of Japan are contaminated to measured levels around 1 microsievert per hour. This figure is just for Caesium 137; it does not measure the alpha-emitting radionuclides Plutonium and Uranium. These contaminants are the real threat to health. No official sources are saying anything about this hazard although hundreds of tonnes of Uranium and Plutonium are missing from the spent fuel ponds. It's known that up to 1760 tonnes of spent fuel was stored on site.

Early signs of health damage: We have received information from people in the Tokyo region stating that they have swollen lymph nodes and sores in their nostrils. These are indicators that they have probably inhaled particles of Plutonium and Uranium. LLRC advice: unless it is absolutely impossible to leave, evacuate to areas where there has been no fallout - check MEXT data (English) or MEXT data (Japanese) .

Also duplicate posted by http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2847 UC Berkeley Nuclear Engineering, but I can find no other official reports, so far it may be a rumor.

Date: April 12, 2011

REMOTE CONTROLLED HELICOPTERS, DUMPER AND LOADER IN USE
Fukushima Nuclear Plant Video Taken by Remote Controlled Helicopter japannewstoday
Tokyo Electric Power is putting remote controlled machinery to use at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. This video, released Monday, was shot by a remote-controlled helicopter a day earlier and shows the plants number four reactor building.

ONE-TENTH SCALE CHERNOBYL DISASTER A 7 NOT A 5
> Japanese Officials on Defensive as Nuclear Alert Level Rises The government announced Tuesday morning that it had raised its rating of the severity of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station to 7, the worst on an international scale, from 5. Officials said that the reactor had released one-tenth as much radioactive material as the Chernobyl accident in 1986, but still qualified as a 7 according to a complex formula devised by the International Atomic Energy Agency

based largely on computer models showing very heavy emissions of radioactive iodine and cesium from March 14 to 16, just after the earthquake and tsunami rendered the plant’s emergency cooling system inoperative. The nearly monthlong delay in acknowledging the extent of these emissions is a fresh example of confused data and analysis from the Japanese, and put the authorities on the defensive about whether they have delayed or blocked the release of information to avoid alarming the public.

“If we immediately decided to label the situation as Level 7, we could have triggered a panicked reaction.”

Date: April 13, 2011

Kaku predicts meltdowns - Unit 1 had already melted down 1st day, unit 3 on the 14th, and unit 2 by the 15th. Expert: Despite Japanese Gov’t Claims of Decreasing Radiation, Fukushima a “Ticking Time Bomb” we’re joined by Dr. Michio Kaku, a Japanese American physicist, a bestselling author, professor of theoretical physics at City University of New York and the City College of New York. His brand new book is Physics of the Future: How Science Will Change Daily Life by 2100.

Welcome to Democracy Now! It’s great to see you again.

The situation is not stable at all. So, you’re looking at basically a ticking time bomb. It appears stable, but the slightest disturbance—a secondary earthquake, a pipe break, evacuation of the crew at Fukushima—could set off a full-scale meltdown at three nuclear power stations, far beyond what we saw at Chernobyl.

I think the Japanese military is the only organization capable of bringing this raging accident under control. And that’s what Gorbachev did in 1986. He saw this flaming nuclear power station in Chernobyl. He called out the Red Air Force. He called out helicopters, tanks, armored personnel carriers, and buried the Chernobyl reactor in 5,000 tons of cement, sand and boric acid. That’s, of course, a last ditch effort. But I think the Japanese military should be called out.

At Chernobyl, there were 600,000 people mobilized, each one going in for just a few minutes, dumping sand, concrete, boric acid onto the reactor site. Each one got a medal. That’s what it took to bring one raging nuclear accident under control. And I think the utility here is simply outclassed and overwhelmed.

DR. MICHIO KAKU: Think of driving a car, and the car all of a sudden lunges out of control. You hit the brakes. The brakes don’t work. That’s because the earthquake wiped out the safety systems in the first minute of the earthquake and tsunami. Then your radiator starts to heat up and explodes. That’s the hydrogen gas explosion. And then, to make it worse, the gas tank is heating up, and all of a sudden your whole car is going to be in flames. That’s the full-scale meltdown.

So what do you do? You drive the car into a river. That’s what the utility did by putting seawater, seawater from the Pacific Ocean, in a desperate attempt to keep water on top of the core. But then, seawater has salt in it, and that gums up your radiator. And so, what do you do? You call out the local firemen. And so, now you have these Japanese samurai warriors. They know that this is potentially a suicide mission. They’re coming in with hose water—hose water—trying to keep water over the melted nuclear reactor cores. So that’s the situation now.

TEPCO Releases Detailed Analysis of Tsunami that Hit the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant

TEPCO has released a detailed analysis of the tsunami that hit the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear plant on March 11th, 2011. The analysis specifies the Inundation height, Inundation area, and the Run-up Height

Inundation Height – Considering the marks left on building facilities the height of the Tsunami waters reached 14meters to 15meters above the base level (Base Level = O.P. 0 meters) Inundation Depth was approximately 4 to 5 meters.

Inundation Area – Most of the ocean-side area (height of site: O.P. +4 meters) and the main building area

Run-up Height – Considering the vestiges in slope and the surface of the road, approximately O.P. +14.5 meters

It appears the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant was designed to be able to handle Tsunami waters that are only 5.7 meters above the Base level O.P. 0 meters. As the Tsunami waters reached 14 to 15 meters above base level, it easily exceeded the existing countermeasures.

Date: April 14, 2011

Aftershocks prompt precautions at Fukushima 15 April 2011 World Nuclear News Following a series of aftershocks - some as great as magnitude 7 - plant owner Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) has said that workers at the plant are moving emergency diesel generators and the pump control switch panel to higher ground, over 20 metres above sea level. Back-up power trucks and fire engines have been brought to the plant, should those currently being used be lost in another tsunami. Tepco said that work is in progress to reconnect two grid power lines to units 1 to 4 of the plant, to act as back-ups if the current connections fail. The company is also considering setting up a second system, utilizing temporary storage tanks, for pumping water into the reactors.

Japan eyes possible damage to spent nuclear fuel By Matt Smith, CNN April 14, 2011 9:21 a.m. EDT Japan says high radiation probably due to debris (but where did the debris get radioactive? what caused the big fire at the fuel pond???)

the radiation levels are far lower than they would be if there were damage to the fuel rods, said Hidehiko Nishiyama, the chief spokesman for Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Commission. "We need more analysis to identify the precise status of the spent fuel in unit 4," he said. Tokyo Electric said Thursday night that the sample was the first time they have taken a reading off one of the spent fuel pools. The water temperature in the No. 4 pool was 90 degrees Celsius, more than twice a normal reading, and more coolant water was poured into the reservoir on Wednesday."

Date: April 15, 2011

LA Times visits Fukushima Plant gate, then turns around and flees

CNN reporter on the same ride

Date: April 17, 2011

• Tokyo Utility Lays Out Plan for Its Reactors By KEN BELSON and STEVEN LEE MYERS Published: April 17, 2011 New York Times TEPCO gives up on original plan of starting up cooling systems once power is up as they are damaged beyond repair due to earthquake and explosions. A new blueprint is presented "for bringing the reactors at its hobbled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into a stable state known as cold shutdown within the next nine months and for trying to reduce the levels of radioactive materials being released in the meantime. " plan press release ...company implicitly acknowledged what outside experts had been warning for weeks: that the company’s earlier plan to repair the existing system was unlikely to work because the equipment was too badly damaged. The change in approach means that the country must resign itself to several more months of radioactive emissions — into the air and possibly into the Pacific
• Robot Detects High Radiation In Japan Reactors MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press POSTED: 9:45 pm CDT April 17, 2011 [robots find out radiation is too high to send people inside] two Packbots, (made by iRobot which also makes Roomba household vacuum) which resemble drafting lamps on tank-like treads, entered. ...reported radioactivity readings of up to 49 millisieverts per hour inside Unit 1 (same as US annual limit) and up to 57 inside Unit 3, levels too high for workers to realistically enter. ...doubled the legal limit for nuclear workers since the crisis began to 250 millisieverts a year. Workers in the U.S. nuclear industry are allowed an upper limit of 50 millisieverts per year. Doctors say radiation sickness sets in at 1,000 millisieverts and includes nausea and vomiting.

Date: April 19, 2011

Water Pumping Begins at Japan Nuclear Reactor Posted on 19 April 2011 by Bajan Sun Online

• planned to pump 10,000 metric tons of water into a storage building at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station at a rate of 480 tons a day, which would take nearly three weeks. The company is still working on ways to remove another 57,500 tons of heavily contaminated water spread among the same building and other nearby buildings
• it would take at least until the end of May to set up a water treatment station at the Fukushima nuclear plant and begin purifying water
• two robots entered reactor No. 2 on Monday, the steam inside was so dense that a robot mounted with a camera was unable to get a clear image of a radiation sensor
• to improve cooling, Mr. Nishiyama said on Tuesday that a decision had been made to flood the primary containment vessels of the No. 1 and No. 3 reactors with enough water to cover up the sides of the reactor pressure vessels up to the level of the uranium fuel rods inside. (determined not leaking, no. 2 has probable leaks)
• trouble maneuvering in the No. 3 reactor because rubble blocked their path.
• As the reactors have cooled, technicians have also stopped venting radioactive gas into the atmosphere.

Date: April 20, 2011

Beyond Nuclear submits emergency enforcement petition to NRC calling for suspension of 21 GE BWR Mark 1 atomic reactor licenses Beyond Nuclear has submitted a Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 2.206 (10CFR2.206) "emergency enforcement petition" to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) urging the suspension of 21 General Electric Boiling Water Reactor Mark 1s' operating licenses in the wake of the catastrophic failure of identical containment systems at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant in Japan. In addition, Beyond Nuclear has petitioned that a total of 24 GE BWR Mark 1 storage pools for high-level radioactive waste in the U.S. be required to install backup power supplies for running cooling water circulation systems in the event of a loss of the primary electrical grid, something they now lack, despite their location outside of a primary containment structure. See Beyond Nuclear's 2.206 "emergency enforcement petition," as well as NRC's announcement of its docketing. Also see Beyond Nuclear's media release on this petition

Date: April 25, 2011 Monday

Something Odd Is Happening at Reactor Number 4

NHK reports:
The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is
carefully monitoring the situation at the Number 4 spent fuel pool,
where the water temperature is rising despite increased injections of
cooling water.

Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, says it will inject 210 tons
of water into the pool on Monday, after finding on Sunday evening that
the temperature in the pool had risen to 81 degrees Celsius.

On Friday, TEPCO found that the pool's temperature had reached 91
degrees, so it began injecting 2 to 3 times the amount of water.

The Number 4 spent fuel pool stores 1,535 fuel rods, the most at the
nuclear complex.

Nuclear engineer Arnie Gundersen notes that the spent fuel rods in
reactor number 4 have no water, and the rods are exposed:

In addition, the official Japanese atomic energy website shows 4,250
sieverts/hour of radiation inside the xxcontainment vesselxx at reactor 4
("S/C" stands for suppression chamber - that's the torus):

·         Kaku on Maher It's a science experiment, there is nothing in the book "oh it's all taken care of".

·         April 25, 2011 Hot debris hampers reactor repairs Radiation map shows hazards lurking around every corner

·         Free Republic Japan: Map details radiation at N-plant site
Yomiuri Shimbun ^ | 04/26/11

Posted on Tue Apr 26 2011 05:55:27 GMT-0700 (Pacific Daylight Time) by TigerLikesRooster

 

Map details radiation at N-plant site



Tokyo Electric Power Co. has released to the public for the first time a map of its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant that shows results of a survey of radiation levels at the site.

The map released Sunday shows high levels of radiation in different parts of the site, including 300 millisieverts per hour from debris near the No. 3 reactor, the outer building of which was damaged in a hydrogen explosion more than a month ago.

The map, which shows radiation levels at about 230 locations within the nuclear plant complex, indicates the dangers of working at the plant for long periods.

A TEPCO spokesperson said the information revealed by the map would not affect the timetable for stabilizing the reactors that was released by the firm this month.


(Excerpt) Read more at yomiuri.co.jp ...

·         Japan: TEPCO discloses radiation map

·         RELEASING 154 TERABEQ A DAY, 10,000 OVER NEXT 3 MONTHS
Atmospheric radiation leak underestimated The Yomiuri Shimbun April 25, 2011 Iodine-131 and cesium-137 were released into the atmosphere that day at the estimated rates of 0.69 terabecquerel per hour and 0.14 terabecquerel per hour... converted into iodine-131 equivalents ....to arrive at the total 154 terabecquerels per day... [TEPCO] would not start to get radiation leakage under control until the plan's fourth month of implementation... means 10,000 terabecquerels of radioactive substances would be released into the atmosphere from the plant during the coming three months, according to simple calculations based on the estimated emission rate as of April 5.

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Date: April 26, 2011 Tuesday

robots on Tuesday 4/26 detected radiation levels of up to 1,120 millisieverts per hour inside the No.1 reactor building. It says some contaminated water may be leaking from the reactor into external pipes. http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/27_16.html

---

 

 

 

 

Date: April 26, 2011 Tuesday

Radiation Readings in Fukushima Reactor Rise to Highest Since Crisis Began took readings as high as 1,120 millisierverts of radiation per hour, Junichi Matsumoto, a general manager at Tokyo Electric Power Co., said today. That’s more than four times the annual dose permitted to nuclear workers at the stricken plant.

·         The cores in reactors 1, 2 and 3 and the spent fuels rods in reactor 4 have been damaged. Tepco has been using fire trucks, concrete pumps and other emergency measures for nearly seven weeks to pour millions of liters of water to cool the units after the accident.

·         Reactors 1 and 2 are less damaged than estimated As much as 55 percent of the No. 1 reactor core at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi station was damaged, compared with its earlier estimate of 70 percent. The assessment for the No. 2 reactor was cut to 25 percent from 35 percent, while that for the No. 3 unit was raised to 30 percent from 25 percent

---

 

 

 

 

Date: April 28, 2011 Thursday

·         >Detection of radioactive materials in the soil in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, TEPCO Press Release, April 27, 2011:

As part of monitoring activity of the surrounding environment, we conducted an analysis of plutonium contained in the soil collected on March 21st and 22nd at the 5 spots in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. [...]

Besides, as the result of the americium and curium analysis in the soil from 2 samples among the 3 periodic sampling spots in which plutonium was detected on March 28th amerium 241, curium 242, 243, and 244 were detected.

We have reported the results of analyses to the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency and the government of Fukushima Prefecture.

We will continue to conduct the similar analysis.

“One tonne of spent nuclear fuel contains about 100 grams of americium” -Wikipedia

Date: April 28, 2011 Thursday

·         4/27: Russia Today from Vermont: Gundersen First to Say Fukushima Worse than Chernobyl by Fairewinds Associates Essentially emitting same levels as Chernobyl. consistently underestimated problem

·         Radiation level in Ractor 4 has jumped again. Now 6550 Sieverts at the S/C. Was 4250 previously. http://atmc.jp/plant/rad/?n=4

·         George Valah - Summary of reactor status (1,2,3,4)

·         * Reactor nr1, throw in the atmosphere 1.120mSv / h! Fukushima 1120 # 1 Throwing Millisieverts per hour, Highest Yet - Vid

·         * Tepco try to fill with cooling water inside the reactor vessel 1, but this will not be able to do it sooner than 3 months! However, it seems that this ship is broken!

·         Japan Says Nuclear Agency Likely Leaking # 1 Containment http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201104250125.html

o    unprecedented and potentially risky measure of allowing water to flood the containment vessels of three troubled reactors

o    the water levels will reach the upper end of the fuel rods within three months.

o    it might not be able to bear the weight of the water, which will reach up to 7,400 tons. TEPCO said it is re-calculating the structural strength of the building.

o    water injected into the pressure vessels is about one ton larger per hour than the amount that evaporates due to the intense heat from the fuel rods. The water level at the No. 1 reactor has been raised to about 6 meters above the bottom of the containment vessel. That level is 3 meters below the bottom of the pressure vessel. But TEPCO has been unable to verify the water levels at the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors, and suspect that water is leaking from the damaged containment vessels.

o    the method is not an effective way to cool the fuel rods.

·         * And it's the same situation as reactors 2.3 1 reactor: reactor inners cracked! TEPCO Says # 2 and # 3 Probably Leaking Containment Vessels

·         4/25: Arnie Gunderson Chief Nuclear Engineer Fairewinds Associates said that what occurred in reactor 3 (one loaded with plutonium!) Was a nuclear explosion, not just hydrogen! Nuclear expert discusses explanations for the much larger explosion at Fukushima Unit 3, compared to the other units. Also, how unit 3 blew large pieces of fuel rods from the fuel pool over two miles and aerosolized plutonium as far as New England.

from http://economicedge.blogspot.com/2011/04/morning-update-market-thread-427-lip.html
More and more evidence points to our own assessments about the Fukushima nuclear plants being far more accurate than the official story line. Now they are finally admitting leaks in 3 of the reactors, they are admitting that the number 4 fuel pool is leaking, and now experts are considering the possibility that the number 3 explosion wasn’t just hydrogen, but that it also had a nuclear impetus that spread the number 3 fuel pool fuel all over the planet…

from http://bojack.org/2011/04/a_tale_of_two_nuke_blowouts.htm:


Studying the videos of the two reactor explosions at Fukushima in Japan, one can see that the destruction of reactor no. 3 (above) was far more violent than the earlier wreck of reactor no. 1. (The explosion of reactor no. 4 apparently happened at night, undetected by any camera.) What happened?

Retired nuclear power exec Arnie Gunderson theorizes that the spent fuel pool in no. 3 may have undergone a "prompt criticality" -- instantaneous, uncontrolled nuclear fission -- that blew it sky high. His thoughtful video on the topic is here.

   Gundersen Postulates Unit 3 Explosion May Have Been Prompt Criticality in Fuel Pool from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo.

youtube video: QMmd1b1gba4: Raw Video

Sombody has drawn dimension on the explosion similar to my estimate based on height of towers:
from? http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc421/therealmadrat/FukuBlast.jpg

Dimensions of the blast, based on landmarks, yup about 1000 ft high mushroom cloud

o    unit 3 much bigger than 1.

o    detonation vs deflgration

o    1 much more "leisurely"

o    3 much more massive

o    large energy straight up that is not in unit 1

o    clear in unit 3 there is

o    bright yellow flash, another important clue

o    pieces of nuclear fuel rods were discovered up to 2 miles from the plant

o    unit 4 fuel rods are intact. Unlikely thrown from the pool, so fuel had to come from unit 3.

o    Uranium found in Hawaii in West coast

o    Americium found in New England - transuranics.

o    Nuclear fueld was volitalizd

o    Large portion of building is missing on south side, heat source still on south side

o    the containment itself remains intact

o    building blown to smithereens

o    belive fuel pool container was empty

o    filled with gases blew upward

o    explosion from inside fuel pool

o    Fuel pool like muzzle of a gun, blew upward

o    a lot of rubble coming down - pieces of uranium and plutonuium

o    explains miles off site

o    blackness of cloud volitized the fuel

o    what caused the force

o    hydrogen makes water, travels at speed of sound

o    dramatic but not explosive

o    magnitude of plume

o    has to be something more here

o    hydrogen starts shock wave which moves fuel in the pool

o    distortion creates prompt prompt nuclear reaction which blows up way to test for this isotopes

o    The comparative videos of "blasts," at each, #1 vs #3

o    Detonation vs deflagation (really interesting point about the rates of shock wave travel and what results from each)

o    Upward vector of "blast," at #3 vs the milder smaller gray-smoked event at #1.

o    The fact that traces of uranium isotopes were found as far away as 2 kilometers following #3's blast.

o    The comparative videos of "blasts," at each, #1 vs #3

o    Detonation vs deflagation (really interesting point about the rates of shock wave travel and what results from each)

o    Upward vector of "blast," at #3 vs the milder smaller gray-smoked event at #1.

o    The fact that traces of uranium isotopes were found as far away as 2 kilometers following #3's blast.

o    The flame visible out of the south end of #3, wherein #1 had no such flame visible also bolsters the detonation vs deflagration analysis.

o    Last part of his presentation essentially says we don't have all the evidence of all this yet, but he thinks our government does, as our military was nearby monitoring when #3's blast occured and they no doubt have air samples.The flame visible out of the south end of #3, wherein #1 had no such flame visible also bolsters the detonation vs deflagration analysis.

Nuclear Nightmare: Japan in Crisis premieres Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 10pm ET/PT only on Discovery Channel.

Nuclear Nightmare: Japan in Crisis - Managing Unstable Nuclear Energy
Everything on the line:


Part 1 of 3


Part 2 of 3


Part 3 of 3


Pixeldust Studios Animates Japan's Crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Complex for Discovery TV Special "Nuclear Nightmare: Japan in Crisis" Bethesda, MD, May 20, 2011 | SHOOT Publicity Wire | --- Pixeldust Studios, a multi-award winning digital animation and broadcast design studio, was retained by Weinberger Media Partners to create and produce original animations that were featured within a recently aired Discovery TV special entitled "Nuclear Nightmare: Japan In Crisis." Ricardo Andrade, President and Creative Director, Pixeldust Studios, made the announcement. To view Pixeldust Studios' animation work that was featured within this special TV presentation, please see: http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/nuclear-nightmare-japan-in-crisis-nuclear-meltdown.html

April 19 NYDailyNews

date: April 29, 2011

Michio Ishikawa: I Believe the Fuel Rods Are Completely Melted

Michio Ishikawa of the Japan Nuclear Technology Institute on the situation at Fukushima I Nuke Plant, as he appeared on Asahi TV on April 29

“I believe the fuel rods are completely melted. They may already have escaped the pressure vessel. Yes, they say 55% or 30%, but I believe they are all melted down. When the fuel rods melt, they melt from the middle part on down.

“I think the temperature inside the melted core is 2000 degrees to 2000 and several hundred degrees Celsius. A crust has formed on the surface where the water hits. Decay heat is 2000 to 3000 kilowatts, and through the cracks on the crust the radioactive materials (mostly noble gas and iodine) are escaping into the air.

[Later on] The show’s host says “But wait a minute, Mr. Ishikawa, you are a proponent of nuclear power and we expected to hear from you that everything is going well at Fukushima…”

Mr. Ishikawa answers, “Well, if I’m allowed to tell a lie…”




Date: May 6, 2011

How Fukushima Filed Financial times Ryota Takakura was packing low-level radioactive waste into drums when the ground started shaking. It was 2.46pm on March 11, ... It buckled roads, toppled electricity pylons and rattled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the sprawling six-reactor facility where Takakura worked doing basic maintenance. As the ground heaved, he and a group of colleagues clustered around a pillar in the plant’s waste disposal building, clutching each other to stay on their feet. Then the lights went out, leaving them in pitch darkness amid the groans of the building...

Ryota Takakura, the plant maintenance worker, ....has no work, and when bosses at his company, a Tepco sub-contractor, called to offer him a 100-month contract to return to the plant, he refused. “I don’t want to do a job if it means I might die in 10 years’ time,” he says.

@@/Timeline

Date: May 10, 2011

class="title"> US/Japan release radiological readings around Fukushima: Hot zones higher than those prompting 1986 Chernobyl evacuations

With the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident now approaching the ninth week and still out of control, the situation remains grave as the Japanese government and industry desparately struggle to bring the severely damaged multi-unit reactor complex into cold shutdown in order to prevent more hydrogen gas explosions and even greater radioactive releases.  

New radiological monitoring data jointly collected and published on May 6, 2011 by Japanese and US authorities reveal ground level radioactive cesium contamination beyond Japan's declared twelve (12) mile “no entry zone” higher than radiation levels that prompted the mandatory evacuation of populations from around the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986. Radiation readings taken by helicopter and plane found levels of radioactive cesium137 (30 year half-life) registering between 3 million and 30 million Becquerel per square meter (Bq/m²). Following the Chernobyl nuclear accident in Ukraine, populations in Ukraine were ordered out of areas contaminated at 550,000 Bq/m². Those areas are still officially declared to be an uninhabitable zone now more than twenty five years later.