ID :
168482
Tue, 03/15/2011 - 20:35
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/168482
The shortlink copeid
Japan's nuclear crisis on verge of catastrophe post-quake
Fukushima/Tokyo, Mar 15 (PTI) Japan's nuclear crisis
assumed dangerous dimensions on Tuesday as two more blasts
rocked the quake-crippled Fukushima plant spewing large
amounts of radioactive material which may float towards Tokyo,
with Premier Naoto Kan warning that there was a "very high
risk" of further leakage.
The hydrogen explosions at No.2 and No.4 reactors at the
Fukushima Daiichi plant on Tuesday morning prompted the
government to announce that the radiation had reached harmful
levels.
A fire was also reported around 9:40 am local time at the
No.4 reactor, where spent nuclear fuels were stored, but it
was extinguished later, according to Tokyo Electric Power
Company (TEPCO), the plant's operator.
The blast at No.2 reactor at 6:10 am appeared to have
damaged one of its containment systems for the first time,
triggering fears about more serious radioactive leaks.
TEPCO said the problem could develop into a critical
"meltdown" situation after part of the No.2 reactor's
container vessel damaged following the explosion, Kyodo
reported.
A worried Prime Minister Kan, in his address to the
nation, warned that the radiation had already spread from the
crippled reactors and there was "a very high risk of further
leakage".
He asked an estimated 140,000 people living within 30 kms
of the facility north of capital to remain indoors and
conserve power as threat loomed large of Japan's crisis
turning into a Chernobyl-like disaster.
There were fears that the effects of the explosions and
fire at the nuclear reactors could spread to Tokyo, home to 12
million people, as the metropolitan authorities said they had
detected a small amount of radioactive material such as iodine
and cesium in the air of the city.
The wind was blowing from north to south when the
explosions occurred at the Fukushima plant.
The French embassy in the capital city issued an
advisory, warning that low-level radioactive winds could hit
Tokyo from the plant located 240 kms away in about 10 hours.
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the high
radiation level detected at 10:22 am after the explosions at
the No.2 and No.4 reactors would "certainly have negative
effects on the human body."
assumed dangerous dimensions on Tuesday as two more blasts
rocked the quake-crippled Fukushima plant spewing large
amounts of radioactive material which may float towards Tokyo,
with Premier Naoto Kan warning that there was a "very high
risk" of further leakage.
The hydrogen explosions at No.2 and No.4 reactors at the
Fukushima Daiichi plant on Tuesday morning prompted the
government to announce that the radiation had reached harmful
levels.
A fire was also reported around 9:40 am local time at the
No.4 reactor, where spent nuclear fuels were stored, but it
was extinguished later, according to Tokyo Electric Power
Company (TEPCO), the plant's operator.
The blast at No.2 reactor at 6:10 am appeared to have
damaged one of its containment systems for the first time,
triggering fears about more serious radioactive leaks.
TEPCO said the problem could develop into a critical
"meltdown" situation after part of the No.2 reactor's
container vessel damaged following the explosion, Kyodo
reported.
A worried Prime Minister Kan, in his address to the
nation, warned that the radiation had already spread from the
crippled reactors and there was "a very high risk of further
leakage".
He asked an estimated 140,000 people living within 30 kms
of the facility north of capital to remain indoors and
conserve power as threat loomed large of Japan's crisis
turning into a Chernobyl-like disaster.
There were fears that the effects of the explosions and
fire at the nuclear reactors could spread to Tokyo, home to 12
million people, as the metropolitan authorities said they had
detected a small amount of radioactive material such as iodine
and cesium in the air of the city.
The wind was blowing from north to south when the
explosions occurred at the Fukushima plant.
The French embassy in the capital city issued an
advisory, warning that low-level radioactive winds could hit
Tokyo from the plant located 240 kms away in about 10 hours.
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the high
radiation level detected at 10:22 am after the explosions at
the No.2 and No.4 reactors would "certainly have negative
effects on the human body."
