Tohoku Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster!!!

[Mike Oxlong]

NASA Finds 'Merging Tsunami' Doubled Japan Destruction

NASA and Ohio State University researchers have discovered the major tsunami generated by the March 2011 Tohoku-Oki quake centered off northeastern Japan was a long-hypothesized "merging tsunami." The tsunami doubled in intensity over rugged ocean ridges, amplifying its destructive power at landfall.

Data from NASA and European radar satellites captured at least two wave fronts that day. The fronts merged to form a single, double-high wave far out at sea. This wave was capable of traveling long distances without losing power. Ocean ridges and undersea mountain chains pushed the waves together along certain directions from the tsunami's origin.

The discovery helps explain how tsunamis can cross ocean basins to cause massive destruction at some locations while leaving others unscathed. The data raise hope that scientists may be able to improve tsunami forecasts...

[dimwit]

[damn name]

^^ The exact same circumstances occur throughout the entire global nuclear industry. There is nothing unique about Japan in this regard.

[JLR]

Hmmm.


http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/archive/news/2011/12/06/20111206p2g00m0dm142000c.html

[Russell]

^^ The exact same circumstances occur throughout the entire global nuclear industry. There is nothing unique about Japan in this regard.

Can you back that claim up by documents or links?

[Coligny]

^^ The exact same circumstances occur throughout the entire global nuclear industry. There is nothing unique about Japan in this regard.

Sub contractors: yes

Barely litterate drunkards used as disposable humans robots: not so sure

Here's an article on the safety and skills of subcontractors for French powerplants:

http://lenergeek.com/2011/06/22/nucleaire-quelles-conditions-de-securite-pour-les-sous-traitants-dedf/

(in French, get used to it cauz': w3 0wnZ y0u b1tches... at least for non blow-in-your-face nukular technology)

Basically, the required skills are so specific that only few people have them, requiring high geographical mobility and rationnalising the setup up as 'sub contractors'. The existence of Nukular Safety Commission independant from the power companies and in charge of cock blocking every (or at least most) dick moves garantee safety for workers, plant and populations. That might be one of the 'few' missing things in Japan... with competence and common sense...

See also: Areva's report on outsourcing policies http://www.areva.com/EN/news-9060/nuclear-subcontracting-areva-submits-report-to-the-french-industry-minister.html (in French too, because... w3 0wnz... well you know the end...)

[damn name]

Who do you think does nuclear refueling and most waste hands on disposal around the world? Day laborers.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1963306/

[Russell]

Who do you think does nuclear refueling and most waste hands on disposal around the world? Day laborers.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1963306/

Thanks. A quick reading of this document gives me the impression that they hire non-specialists for costs reasons and fail to give them safety training. Just wondering how much cheaper this makes nuclear power, because its low costs are presumable the reason for its use.
This is actually quite shocking. I have always been told that nuclear power is safe for the workers at the plant, but this is apparently only when they are experienced and properly trained. But maybe even then it is not so safe...

[Russell]

Sub contractors: yes

Barely litterate drunkards used as disposable humans robots: not so sure

Here's an article on the safety and skills of subcontractors for French powerplants:

http://lenergeek.com/2011/06/22/nucleaire-quelles-conditions-de-securite-pour-les-sous-traitants-dedf/

(in French, get used to it cauz': w3 0wnZ y0u b1tches... at least for non blow-in-your-face nukular technology)

Basically, the required skills are so specific that only few people have them, requiring high geographical mobility and rationnalising the setup up as 'sub contractors'. The existence of Nukular Safety Commission independant from the power companies and in charge of cock blocking every (or at least most) dick moves garantee safety for workers, plant and populations. That might be one of the 'few' missing things in Japan... with competence and common sense...

See also: Areva's report on outsourcing policies http://www.areva.com/EN/news-9060/nuclear-subcontracting-areva-submits-report-to-the-french-industry-minister.html (in French too, because... w3 0wnz... well you know the end...)

Ouch, French. Even putting a laundry pin on my nose won't then make my reading any faster, so I guess I will bail out this time...

[Coligny]

Thanks. A quick reading of this document gives me the impression that they hire non-specialists for costs reasons and fail to give them safety training. Just wondering how much cheaper this makes nuclear power, because its low costs are presumable the reason for its use.
This is actually quite shocking. I have always been told that nuclear power is safe for the workers at the plant, but this is apparently only when they are experienced and properly trained. But maybe even then it is not so safe...

Yes, but generalizing the behaviour of few third world countries as being universal even in modern advanced industrial nations is a bit of a shortcut...

[damn name]

Russell:

The use of day laborers for nuclear work was common knowledge within the power industry when I was in it 30 years ago. Sub-contractors hired small-frame illegal aliens in the US whenever possible.

Small frames allowed them to crawl into small spaces in reactors and containment buildings during refueling for parts replacements. The illegal part was the same as many industries that hire illegals - they don't complain, don't sue, don't usually have access to health care and have little recourse if someone screws them with their pay. They moved around the country with no trail of previous exposure rates and were hungry for work.

Japanese certainly haven't cornered the market on exploitation. I don't know of any culture that doesn't exhibit exploitation.

There is a new movie out called "Thrive" (if I remember the name correctly). I haven't seen it, but I read that it covers a lot of the strength, reach and control of the power & energy industry.

[2triky]

Japan mulls $13 billion Fukushima bailout

By Linda Sieg and Kentaro Hamada

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Japanese government may inject about $13 billion into Tokyo Electric Power Co (9501.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) as early as next summer in a de facto nationalization of the operator of the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, sources said on Thursday.

Tepco's future as an independent firm has been in doubt since an earthquake and tsunami wrecked the plant in March, triggering the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years and leaving it with huge compensation payments and clean-up costs.

In addition to public capital, the government and Tepco will also seek additional loans from banks, sources said, but the full scale of any Tepco bailout remains unclear.

Some analysts expressed doubt that the government would take the drastic step of taking control of the giant monopoly, which still has political clout, but the idea has proponents in some sections of Japan's ruling party.

"You have an essentially bankrupt operation, and if you are going to save it, it's going to cost a lot," said Andrew Dewit, a Rikkyo University professor who writes about energy policy.

"You've got a very bad picture getting worse, and dithering just ups the cost."

Tepco President Toshio Nishizawa was mentioned as saying a public fund injection could not be ruled out. "It is better to keep all options, so I don't deny it," Kyodo news agency quoted him as saying in an interview on Thursday.

Tepco has made progress in bringing the Fukushima plant under control and is on track to declare a "cold shutdown" -- when water used to cool the reactors is stable below boiling point -- before the end of the year.

But decommissioning four reactors at the plant is set to cost at least 1.2 trillion yen ($15.4 billion), a sum that would render Tepco insolvent if drastic measures to shore up its financial base were not taken, media reports said.

...more...

[Mike Oxlong]

Ex-chief of crippled Japan nuke plant has cancer

A utility spokesman says the former chief of Japan's crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant has cancer but doctors do not believe it is related to radioactive exposure.

Masao Yoshida, who led the onsite effort to stabilize the plant after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, stepped down from his post on Dec. 1, citing health reasons.

His employer, Tokyo Electric Power Co., kept the details of his illness under wraps until Friday, when it confirmed he has esophageal cancer.

TEPCO spokesman Masato Yamaguchi says Yoshida was exposed to 70 milliseiverts of radiation after the crisis began. The legal limit for nuclear workers is 100 milliseiverts.

He said doctors believe Yoshida's cancer had been developing for at least five years and is unrelated to the crisis.

[Jack]

Minami Sanriku 8 months after.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/video/world-15749633/raw-video-japan-8-months-after-the-tsunami-27305335.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fworld-15749633%252Fraw-video-japan-8-months-after-the-tsunami-27305335.html

[Mike Oxlong]

Ex-chief of crippled Japan nuke plant has cancer

"Baseless Rumors": Japanese Twitterers Do Not Believe Yoshida's Cancer is in the Esophagus

Partly because of distrust of anything that comes out of the mouth of any TEPCO/government person, but also because of a TEPCO video in which Yoshida appeared to explain to the viewers the then-current situation at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

They think they see a bulge on the left side of his neck, and they think it is either thyroid or lymph node...

[Coligny]

"Baseless Rumors": Japanese Twitterers Do Not Believe Yoshida's Cancer is in the Esophagus

Yeah... usually they won't disclose anything for privacy reason but here we nearly got the full medical file... Color me uninpressed...

[Yokohammer]

After all the flak over the slow response and limited disclosure at Fukushima Daiichi:

Radioactive water leaks at Genkai: Mayor irate as utility fails to reveal glitch at suspended reactor

No matter how serious it is or how inexcusable it is publicly deemed by the people, the media, and the government, the same shit happens over and over and over ...

The term "two-faced" springs to mind.

[Coligny]

Can sumbody tells O'bama that it's not the Iranian military nukular program that is dangerous for the planet... But the civilian japanese one... we could use some carpet bombing too...

[matsuki]

Can sumbody tells O'bama that it's not the Iranian military nukular program that is dangerous for the planet... But the civilian japanese one... we could use some carpet bombing too...

A surgical "preemptive strike" might do less damage than leaving the site to TEPCO

[2triky]

A surgical "preemptive strike" might do less damage than leaving the site to TEPCO

They already tried that, by crashing a drone in to the Iranian desert.

[2triky]

[Coligny]

Those guys just never stop:

Noda declare cold shutdown of Fukushima...

http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2011/12/japans-pm-noda-declares-cold-shutdown.html


Remind me of this one:

[dimwit]

Noda declare cold shutdown of Fukushima...

Given the situation it is absurd to call it a 'cold shutdown' but what I suspect they are trying to say is that temperature is below 95 degrees C in what is left of the reactor cores. Whether they can keep it under control is another matter.

[Coligny]

Looks more like they are trying too hard to look like they are in charge...

[waruta]

[Coligny]

Awesome, maks me feel bad to post this...



But then again... shame nevar killed anybudy...

[Coligny]

In french sorry:

http://lenergeek.com/2011/12/22/centrale-du-blayais-le-renforcement-des-protections-depuis-la-tempete/

Basically, it's an atlantic coastal plant who had 5.2 meters seawalls. During the 1999 december storm... (a.k.a. "Oh shit even Paris is in a blackout..." where the only thing left to do was stay in bed and... use lube... while waiting for the storm to stop shaking my building... 6 story high U shaped red brick structure with a 40mx70m footprint, NOT something that usually move at all)
Some big wave managed to splash over the seawalls and create localized 'floods' with some water leaking in the basement. Incident classified level 2 as the plant had to be shutdown while running on diesel generators after losing the grid power. After that the seawalls were upgraded to a height of 8.5 meter with heavy stone reinforcement.

Daiichi seawalls against typhoons and tsunamis are/were 5.7 meters...

Once again, it's not a case of just calling them idiots out of superiority... It's a case of calling them idiots... because of the experience of the failure (and some luck too)...

[Yokohammer]

Found on Facebook. This is hilarious!

Iran Radio's world service Japanese edition is reporting that after a "scientific survey" it has become clear that more than 14,000 Americans ... that's Americans living in the US ... have died as a result of the fallout from Fukushima.

The article (in Japanese)

Jeez ... not even that many people have died in Fukushima.

Yo! People of Iran! Get some proper scientists! And journalists!

[sirwanksalot]

After that the seawalls were upgraded to a height of 8.5 meter with heavy stone reinforcement.

Daiichi seawalls against typhoons and tsunamis are/were 5.7 meters...

Once again, it's not a case of just calling them idiots out of superiority... It's a case of calling them idiots... because of the experience of the failure (and some luck too)...

France gets some of the world's biggest long period swell. Sometimes on par with Hawaii. Japan's pacific side gets short period swell even during typhoons equaling much smaller surf. Unfortunately for Japan it gets huge magnitude earthquakes that no one had the foresight to prepare for.

[Coligny]

France gets some of the world's biggest long period swell. Sometimes on par with Hawaii.

So... like a tsunami in fact (...)

Japan's pacific side gets short period swell even during typhoons equaling much smaller surf. Unfortunately for Japan it gets huge magnitude earthquakes that no one had the will to prepare for.

FTFY