Tohoku Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster!!!

[Catoneinutica]

Isn't it fascinating how TEPCO and its political, bureaucratic, and business enablers are following more-or-less the same script as did Japan as a whole after WWII? Culpability? What are you talking about? We're not guilty of anything: we were going about being the industrious, modest, careful, diligent nihonjin that we are when we were beset out of the blue by a Force Beyond Our Control.

No. TEPCO is a corporate Joji Obara, with a looong record of transgressions, not an innocent bystander or even first-time offender.

[CrankyBastard]

Isn't it fascinating how TEPCO and its political, bureaucratic, and business enablers are following more-or-less the same script as did Japan as a whole after WWII? Culpability? What are you talking about? We're not guilty of anything: we were going about being the industrious, modest, careful, diligent nihonjin that we are when we were beset out of the blue by a Force Beyond Our Control.

No. TEPCO is a corporate Joji Obara, with a looong record of transgressions, not an innocent bystander or even first-time offender.

They'll tell the same old story, "We didn't drop the ball. It fell out of our hands."

[omae mona]

If you go back and look I was responding to someone else's post about the 25% or 100% increase vs potentially increased safety.

And if you look at the post he was responding to, it was mentioning this as an imaginary, vastly exaggerated, unrealistic point. The purpose was to show that in general, we need to make choices in life about balancing risk versus cost.

The point was NOT that buying a stupid little generator was going to cause electricity costs to double. The point was NOT that TEPCO made smart decisions. Wasn't that clear?

[FG Lurker]

And if you look at the post he was responding to, it was mentioning this as an imaginary, vastly exaggerated, unrealistic point. The purpose was to show that in general, we need to make choices in life about balancing risk versus cost.

The point was NOT that buying a stupid little generator was going to cause electricity costs to double. The point was NOT that TEPCO made smart decisions. Wasn't that clear?

Few people want to look at the reality of the situation. Lots of people happily lapping up the fear pumped out to fill the news cycle.

[Yokohammer]

Allow me to inject a small dose of on-the-ground perspective, and even semi-niceness, into a somewhat gnarly thread.

It is an absolutely gorgeous day here in Watari. Light-coat weather, blue skies, and a refreshing breeze. The official radiation count for our town yesterday, March 31, was 0.28 µSv/h. Phmeh! Garbage collection finally resumed today, adding to our slowly increasing sense of approaching normalcy. To test that even further, I ventured down to the local gas station to fill up the car, and only had to wait about 30 minutes ... but if 'd just arrived 30 minutes later I probably would only have had to wait about 5 minutes (note to self: go to the gas station after 9:00 AM, after everyone has filled up on their way to work).

Shopping at the supermarket is an almost-normal experience now too. A few items are in short supply, and large sections of the ceiling in our Yoku Benimaru super are missing, but other than that life goes on.

Now all we need is train service. The Joban line that runs through Watari (the whole things runs from Sendai to Ueno) is completely phuqued, although parts of the run will supposedly be restored by around the middle of April. One of the nice things about living where I do is that, normally, it's just a 30-minute train ride up to Sendai. Right now that's out of the question. But as of the middle of April there will be service from Watari up to Iwanuma (that's only two stops), and from there it will be possible to take the Tohoku Hon-sen up to Sendai.

We're getting there.

Of course we can't forget the many, many people who now have nowhere to live and no work, but life will definitely improve for them as well as soon as the basic infrastructure gets moving again.

So there it is. If it wasn't for that fucking thorn in our side -- the Fukushima Dai-ichi Genpatsu -- things would be looking up overall.

[cstaylor]

Few people want to look at the reality of the situation. Lots of people happily lapping up the fear pumped out to fill the news cycle.

Fear? More like anger at TEPCO.

[cstaylor]

So there it is. If it wasn't for that fucking thorn in our side -- the Fukushima Dai-ichi Genpatsu -- things would be looking up overall.

:clap:
Oops, that must be more "lapped up fear".

[omae mona]

:clap:
Oops, that must be more "lapped up fear".

Seems more than fair to call Fukushima a thorn in the side if you're living 70km away. While it's a very controversial call, the U.S. government is sticking with their recommendation that people within 80km should evacuate. At a minimum, it seems like one would want to put in some effort to keep tabs on the situation regularly. Even the Japanese government is considering whether they need to expand the evacuation zone. And if that happens, you don't want to be the last person to find out.

Doesn't sound like a reason to be in fear, but it does sound like a pain in the ass, which is what I think Yokohammer is saying.

[cstaylor]

Doesn't sound like a reason to be in fear, but it does sound like a pain in the ass, which is what I think Yokohammer is saying.

I was being sarcastic about FGL's comment.

Any news on Merrill's risk assessment? 11 trillion yen... ouch.

[FG Lurker]

:clap:
Oops, that must be more "lapped up fear".

It sounds like you felt my comment struck a little too close to home.

[Coligny]

Fear? More like anger at TEPCO.

Phear is easier to dismiss as being irrationnal than anger...

[omae mona]

Any news on Merrill's risk assessment? 11 trillion yen... ouch.

My spy network cannot find any research report from Merrill, and normally they'd have it at their fingertips. So I am not sure where this came from. Continuing to look...

[CrankyBastard]

Come on folks, as Hammer said, it's getting gnarly.
I must admit, the situation requires that we all do our best and pull together.
Yesterday,when the dry cleaning came back and I found they'd over starched my pyjamas. Did I go off the deep end? Of course I didn't. Because I realize that these are very trying times for all of us!

[Typhoon]

"AFP (Tokyo) - Researchers at RIKEN have discovered a simple yet effective means of containing leaked radiation.
After non-stop investigation of many different compounds over the past several weeks, they have found that, by mixing the highly radioactive contaminated water
with the popular wheat based material known as Play-Doh, a slurry is formed which is sponteanously polymerized by the emitted radiation to form a hard,
nearly impenetrable, plastic. This novel plastic traps the radioactive elements in it's polymer matrix enabling the waste material to be more easily collected and safely
transported off site. "We hope that this new material will prove to be helpful in dealing with the radioactive effluent", stated Dr. Yasuhiro Nakamatsu, a member of the
RIKEN Biomass Engineering Program. However, he also expressed his concern as to whether or not sufficient amounts of Play-Doh are currently available to
deal with the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi site and said that he, after consultation with his colleagues, has advised the Japanese government to issue a worldwide request
for any Play-Doh not currently in use to be sent to Japan. Dr. Nakamatsu also indicated that he and his team hope to develop, in the the near future, a similar rice based
material that would prove to be a more effective substitute."

[cstaylor]

"AFP (Tokyo) - Researchers at RIKEN have discovered a simple yet effective means of containing leaked radiation.
After non-stop investigation of many different compounds over the past several weeks, they have found that, by mixing the highly radioactive contaminated water
with the popular wheat based material known as Play-Doh, a slurry is formed which is sponteanously polymerized by the emitted radiation to form a hard,
nearly impenetrable, plastic. This novel plastic traps the radioactive elements in it's polymer matrix enabling the waste material to be more easily collected and safely
transported off site.

LOL! Sounds like a Dr. Nakamatsu solution.

[cstaylor]

It sounds like you felt my comment struck a little too close to home.

Well, a lot closer than Kansai anyway.

[cstaylor]

Phear is easier to dismiss as being irrationnal than anger...

But it's okay, because his tax money is paying for the cleanup too after they nationalize TEPCO.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/01/us-tepco-nationalisation-statement-idUSTRE73007A20110401

[cstaylor]

Fukushima plant groundwater likely contaminated despite data error

Groundwater at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is highly likely to be contaminated with radioactive materials, even though its operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. is reviewing its analysis released late Thursday due to erroneous calculations, the government's nuclear safety agency said Friday.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said some of the analysis data on the groundwater presented by the utility known as TEPCO cannot be trusted due to the errors, casting doubts on the finding that the concentration of radioactive iodine in the water was 10,000 times the legal limit.

"No, Watanabe-kun, that number is way too high... we'll just erase the last zero"



http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2011/04/82524.html

[cstaylor]

[quote="BBC"]
More than 70,000 people have been evacuated from a 20km (12-mile) evacuation zone around the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

Another 136,000 people who live in a 10km zone beyond that have been encouraged by the authorities to leave or to stay indoors.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the evacuation would be a "long-term" operation.

"So therefore, we are giving instructions on how to proceed with the continuation of children's' education, and the employment of people who are unable to work because of the evacuation order," he said.

Highly radioactive water continues to leak at the plant]



http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12930949

[cstaylor]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12931413

[cstaylor]

[nullpointer]

World's largest concrete pump heading to Fukushima

More Here

[cstaylor]

NEWS ADVISORY: Gov't may shoulder some damage costs from nuclear accident: Kan

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/

Those portable generators sure look cheap now.

[FG Lurker]

Link for FGL: http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/monkeys-candy-and-cognitive-dissonance/

Still waiting for evidence of anything actually dangerous in Tokyo which was what got you so riled up (and what I took issue with) in the first place.

I don't expect any such real evidence to ever appear, nor do I expect you to ever admit you overreacted and panicked.

[legion]

Allow me to inject a small dose of on-the-ground perspective, and even semi-niceness, into a somewhat gnarly thread.

It is an absolutely gorgeous day here in Watari. Light-coat weather, blue skies, and a refreshing breeze. The official radiation count for our town yesterday, March 31, was 0.28 &#181]after[/u] 9:00 AM, after everyone has filled up on their way to work).

Shopping at the supermarket is an almost-normal experience now too. A few items are in short supply, and large sections of the ceiling in our Yoku Benimaru super are missing, but other than that life goes on.

Now all we need is train service. The Joban line that runs through Watari (the whole things runs from Sendai to Ueno) is completely phuqued, although parts of the run will supposedly be restored by around the middle of April. One of the nice things about living where I do is that, normally, it's just a 30-minute train ride up to Sendai. Right now that's out of the question. But as of the middle of April there will be service from Watari up to Iwanuma (that's only two stops), and from there it will be possible to take the Tohoku Hon-sen up to Sendai.

We're getting there.

Of course we can't forget the many, many people who now have nowhere to live and no work, but life will definitely improve for them as well as soon as the basic infrastructure gets moving again.

So there it is. If it wasn't for that fucking thorn in our side -- the Fukushima Dai-ichi Genpatsu -- things would be looking up overall.

Good to hear, thanks

[Mike Oxlong]

[cstaylor]

Still waiting for evidence of anything actually dangerous in Tokyo which was what got you so riled up (and what I took issue with) in the first place.

I don't expect any such real evidence to ever appear, nor do I expect you to ever admit you overreacted and panicked.

How did I panic? I'm still in Yokohama. If you look through my posts, I admitted from the very beginning that gamma radiation on the levels detected in Tokyo and Yokohama are totally safe. For my own peace of mind, I bought a geiger counter so I could verify what the Government of Yokohama was publishing. Since potassium iodide is not an over-the-counter drug in Japan, and it's only useful if taken before or during the early stages of radioiodine ingestion/inhalation, I ordered a single package for my family. Now that I have both I feel confident that I can protect my son.

What you took issue with was our blaming TEPCO for... well, TEPCO's problems. I said that if the earthquake and tsunami had destroyed Daiichi's cooling system, I would agree with you, but no reports released to date show that to be the case. All of the released evidence points to a power failure due to the tsunami, battery backups functioning, poorly placed backup generators failing, no secondary backups available, and the fuel starts to melt.

Why is the president of TEPCO AWOL again? Could it be his drastic cost-cutting is a possible reason why insufficient dosimeters were available?

[nikoneko]

I am currently watching Raspad (aka Decay). http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105220/
This is a Soviet era movie (a drama) about Chernobyl and very prescient to what is going on here. I'm assuming most know nothing about Soviet dramas but this one is typical, over the top and emotional but extremely to the point for our case here in Japan. I just wanted to recommend it to anyone who has the ability to find it, as it is putting things into perspective for me better than anything I have seen.

The most important thing I am seeing, to make some kind of point, is we are at once the same and also nowhere near as bad as they got. The same would be they had Kiev which would be like Tokyo being 100 km away. The scene with the intellectuals discussing radiation there and how to get their wife and kids out is pretty much exactly whats going on in this thread and with all the flygins. The not as bad here part, many people died there within hours of the accident happening and many more died soon after from radiation sickness which we still have not seen here. Not to mention the gov't there quite blatantly lying about it (as in they said the problem didn't exist at all.) Anyway if you can find this movie watch it. Very insightful into the mindset we are all going through.

And since it's late and I got the soapbox, can we please see more relevant posts such as yokohammer's and canman's..? Basically any real info or stories or just human stuff about this disaster, it's why most of us love this site I assume, I've told my wife on more than one occasion the Earthquake! thread on FG is the best place to get info about what is actually going on, not just what goes out on the wires. Not to point to fingers and I totally respect your want to know, but cstaylor et al, you have a geiger counter, you know what levels are safe to yourself and to your family. Read it and go by that, that's all you can know for sure at this point. Reading every single headline and repeating them here is informative but all it does is serve to make yourself and the rest of us react in panic mode, which helps nobody.

Wow it's late back to this crazy russian movie. Lenin forever! (Or was that Stalin, I forget who was the legend and who was the mass murderer. )

[Mulboyne]

Yomiuri: TEPCO failures multiply / Compounding of missteps exacerbated nuclear crisis

Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s failure in its initial response to the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture invited more trouble in a chain reaction, according to an analysis of events over the past three weeks since the March 11 great earthquake and tsunami. At the crippled nuclear power plant, three reactors have been cooled by injecting water using temporarily set up pumps. However, there are fears the spent nuclear fuel rods stored in the reactors' temporary storage pools will overheat again. TEPCO's sloppy way of publicly releasing information related to the accident also has drawn much criticism.

===

Vent operation in trouble

The power plant lost all power on the afternoon of March 11 due to the gigantic tsunami that followed the great earthquake, causing an emergency halt to the operations of the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors. The Nos. 4 to 6 reactors already were not operating due to periodic inspections. Temperatures and pressures inside the pressure vessels of the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors began rising sharply, complicating the injection of cooling water into the reactors. When the level of water in the reactors drops, nuclear fuel rods become exposed, overheat and may start melting, risking damage to the reactor as well as the emission of radioactive substances.

On the night of March 11, TEPCO planned a controlled release of vapor mixed with radioactive substances from the No. 1 reactor, in an operation to decrease pressure in the pressure vessel. However, the operation was not carried out until 10:17 a.m. the following day, four hours after Prime Minister Naoto Kan left the Prime Minister's Office to travel to the Fukushima Prefecture plant for an inspection. Also, evacuation of residents in areas within 10 kilometers of the power plant had not been completed at that time. Then, on the afternoon of March 12, a hydrogen explosion occurred at the No. 1 reactor, destroying the reactor building roof.

Kenzo Miya, professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, an expert on nuclear engineering, said the prime minister's inspection delayed TEPCO's original plans to vent the pressure vessel. "Because of the prime minister's [impending] inspection, the start of the 'vent' was delayed. The possibility that the subsequent actions all fell behind can't be denied," Miya said. Haruki Madarame, chairman of the Cabinet Office's Nuclear Safety Commission, also noted the time-loss disadvantage. "Work [to conduct the 'vent'] took time to get under way. As a result, several hours were lost before starting to inject seawater [to cool the reactor]. It was a painful incident," Madarame said, when recalling the situation on the night of March 23.

Meanwhile, TEPCO President Masataka Shimizu and Chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata were on separate business trips on March 11 when the tsunami hit the plant. They could not return to Tokyo until the following day. "As we communicated with cell phones and other measures, there were no chain of command problems," an official of TEPCO's public relations department said. However, the absence of top management officials might have resulted in the delay in the initial response, some people involved in the handling of the accident said.

===

Use of seawater

To cool the reactor core, TEPCO started injecting seawater in the No. 1 reactor shortly after 8 p.m. on March 12--a full 19 hours since the containment vessel's pressure began rising abnormally. Since TEPCO began injecting seawater to cool the Nos. 2 and 3 reactors on March 13, the operation was believed to have only a limited effect. On March 14 at the No. 2 reactor, cooling water ran out of supply due to loss of fuel for temporary pumps. On the morning of March 15, an explosion at the reactor was believed to have damaged its pressure suppression chamber, part of the containment vessel. It is suspected that water contaminated with high concentration of radioactive substances leaked from the chamber to the reactor's turbine building. The water continues to hamper restoration work at the plant.

Since seawater contains impurities, and its use as a coolant damages the reactors, TEPCO had to consider possibly decomissioning the reactors. "Crucial efforts to tame Japan's crippled nuclear plant were delayed by concerns over damaging valuable power assets," The Wall Street Journal reported in its electronic edition on March 19. TEPCO was "reluctant to use seawater because it worried about hurting its long-term investment in the complex," the report added, quoting people familiar with the situation. TEPCO Vice President Sakae Muto tried hard to refute the criticism in a press conference on the night of March 21. "We've been exercising maximum effort to cool down the reactors," he said.

===

Storage pool for spent fuel rods

Another factor complicating the handling of the nuclear crisis was the delay in TEPCO's response to cool the temporary storage pools for spent nuclear fuel rods. Although the amount of heat generated by the fuel rods in the storage pools is less than the nuclear fuel within a reactor core, the central problem remains: If the fuel rods are exposed when water levels decrease, they will become damaged by overheating. The storage pools are even more dangerous as they could easily discharge radioactivity as they are not stored in a tightly enclosed structure as a reactor.

The attention of the government and TEPCO initially only focused on the reactors themselves. However, both parties also began to consider the threat posed by the temporary storage pools on about March 13, around the time the temperatures of the pools were believed to have begun to rise due to the halt in the circulation of cooling water. At the No. 4 reactor, the pool temperature rose to 84 C on the morning of March 14. In the early hours of the morning of March 15, an explosion and a fire took place at the reactor building, which also houses a temporary storage pool for spent nuclear fuel rods.

===

TEPCO updates late, unreliable

Tokyo Electric Power Co. has been criticized for its delays in disclosing information and repeatedly making inconsistent announcements about the problems at Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. For example, when explosions at buildings housing reactors at the plant were aired live on TV, TEPCO made no prompt statement about the facts behind the incidents. TEPCO's failure to obtain and distribute information about important developments at the plant in a proper manner has been partly due to the fragile state of its internal telecommunications network, which has hampered the transfer of information within the company.

[cstaylor]

Wow it's late back to this crazy russian movie. Lenin forever! (Or was that Stalin, I forget who was the legend and who was the mass murderer. )

Isn't the rule for whoever is in power that his predecessor was the mass murderer and his predecessor's predecessor a Hero of the Soviet union?