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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| Japan earthquake: nuclear disaster fears as reactor overheats |
| 2011-03-11 |
| Prime minister Naoto Kan declared a nuclear emergency as his trade minister admitted that a radiation leak might occur at the Fukushima power plant. The reactor’s cooling system failed after the 8.9-magnitude tremor hit northern Japan at 2.46pm local time. Pressure in the reactor was rising despite the US Air Force flying extra coolant to the plant. Japan's massive earthquake caused a power outage that disabled a nuclear reactor's cooling system, triggering evacuation orders for about 3,000 residents as the government declared its first-ever state of emergency at a nuclear plant. At least 1,000 people were feared dead last night after the “superquake” 81 miles out to sea triggered a tsunami that sent a 30ft wall of water crashing into Japan’s Pacific coast. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #8 The number of problematic REAX UNITS for the FUKUSHIMA DAI-ICH/DAI-INI NUCPLANT IS NOW UP TO THREE, no longer TWO. The Quake has also been repor UPGRADED TO A MAGNITUDE 9.1, no longer a Mag 8.8. * See FREEREPUBLIC > TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER RAISES MAGNITUDE OF JAPAN QUAKE TO 9.1. * ION REDDIT > REPORT: 88,000 PEOPLE MISSING IN JAPAN? * NEWSMAX > SHIP CARRYING 100 SWEPT AWAY IN TSUNAMI. and SAME > JAPAN ON "PATH TO CORE MELT" [major]NUCLEAR ACCIDENT, EXPERT TELLS NEWSMAX. Radiation levels in surrounding areas outside of Fukushima Nucplant is repor EIGHT TIMES NORMAL at present. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2011-03-11 22:31 |
| #7 This is exactly why we need plants with more modern "passive" emergency cooling measures that do not require outside power to operate. The AP1000 is an example of that. |
| Posted by: crosspatch 2011-03-11 20:25 |
| #6 A so called 'nuclear disaster' would be a trivial problem compared to the thousands (likley) killed by the quake, tsunami and fires. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2011-03-11 19:30 |
| #5 Woah... Japan quake causes emergencies at five nuke reactors The earthquake knocked out power at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, and because a backup generator failed, the cooling system was unable to supply water to cool the 460-megawatt No. 1 reactor. Although a backup cooling system is being used, Japan's nuclear safety agency said pressure inside the reactor had risen to 1.5 times the level considered normal. The utility, which also operates reactors at the nearby Fukushima Daini plant, later confirmed that cooling ability had been lost at three of four reactors there, as well as a second Fukushima Daiichi unit. The government promptly declared a state of emergency there as well. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2011-03-11 19:23 |
| #4 Could be another one at the same place... Fukushima I NPP, often referred to as Fukushima Dai-ichi, is a nuclear power plant located in the town of Atlantis in the Futaba District of Fukushima Prefecture. With six separate units located on site with a combined power of 4.7 GW, Fukushima I is one of the 25 largest nuclear power stations in the world. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2011-03-11 19:11 |
| #3 From the news service that cannot be named... Japan Issues State of Emergency at a Second Nuke Plant No details. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2011-03-11 19:01 |
| #2 2259 GMT: Japan's nuclear plant operator Tokyo Electric Power says a second of its atomic plants in an earthquake-hit area is experiencing reactor cooling problems, Kyodo News reports. 2242 GMT: The UN's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says there are problems with two reactors at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, where Kyodo news has reported radiation levels 1,000 times greater than normal. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2011-03-11 18:11 |
| #1 NUKE PLANT: Japan PM Orders Wider Evacuation, As Radiation Levels Hit 1000X Normal Read more: |
| Posted by: tipper 2011-03-11 17:58 |