Mainichi Expert Sr. Writer: Gov’t sources say No. 4 pool a grave concern — Storage pool barely intact — We have no time to humor senseless thinking of those who downplay the risks This is happening now: A continual erosion of the building's integrity. Mainichi Daily News. Excerpts:
[...] One of the biggest issues that we face is the possibility that the spent nuclear fuel pool of the No. 4 reactor at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant will collapse. This is something that experts from both within and outside Japan have pointed out since the massive quake struck. [...] not only independent experts, but also sources within the government say that it’s a grave concern.
(...)The storage pool in the No. 4 reactor building has a total of 1,535 fuel rods, or 460 tons of nuclear fuel, in it. The 7-story building itself has suffered great damage, with the storage pool barely intact on the building’s third and fourth floors. The roof has been blown away. If the storage pool breaks and runs dry, the nuclear fuel inside will overheat and explode, causing a massive amount of radioactive substances to spread over a wide area. Both the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and French nuclear energy company Areva have warned about this risk.
(...)A report released in February by the Independent Investigation Commission on the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Accident stated that the storage pool of the plant’s No. 4 reactor has clearly been shown to be “the weakest link” in the parallel, chain-reaction crises of the nuclear disaster. The worse-case scenario drawn up by the government includes not only the collapse of the No. 4 reactor pool, but the disintegration of spent fuel rods from all the plant’s other reactors. If this were to happen, residents in the Tokyo metropolitan area would be forced to evacuate.
And:
“Because sea water was being pumped into the reactor, the soundness of the structure (concrete corrosion and deterioration) was questionable. There also were doubts about the calculations made on earthquake resistance as well,” (Emphasis author)said one government source familiar with what took place at the time. “[...] fuel rod removal will take three years. Will the structure remain standing for that long? Burying the reactor in a concrete grave is like building a dam, and therefore expensive. I think that it was because TEPCO’s general shareholders’ meeting was coming up (in June 2011) that the company tried to keep expenses low.” [...]
That's some pretty awesome short-term, Bottom-Line thinking, yeah? Is killing your customer base a very sound business strategy? Fukushima is perilously close to becoming an Undisputed Global Event (If Reactor 4's Spent Fuel Pool does indeed go, believe me, You Will Know..), yet won't drop the cash needed to reign in this Catastrophe of Unknown and Unimaginable Magnitude. So it's a good bet that something horrible will happen, as really, it's already happening.. Already.
Why should you care? If you're in the Midwestern United States, chew on this: Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant is at 37 Degrees North Latitude. Kansas City, Missouri is at 39 Degrees North Latitude. I have said this before, but on the good chance you haven't seen it before: The United States is, globally, downwind from Fukushima. And it's not like the earthquakes have stopped, either. And it's not like there's some freak storm coming in from the Sea of Japan.. Wait; There is? My mistake..
(Updated) Japan Meteorological Agency's Highly Unusual Storm Warning on TV: "Don't Go Outside" EX-SKF. Don't forget to watch the wind direction video! Excerpts:
The warning comes from the government agency that prohibited its own researchers from disclosing any information regarding the dispersion of radioactive materials right after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident. Many on Twitter are saying, "Why didn't they say the same thing on March 15 and 21 last year and warn us about radioactive plumes from Fukushima?"
Well, the answer is easy. Because issuing warnings about radioactive material dispersions was not in their job description. It still isn't.
Anyway, a highly unusual low is about to sweep through entire Japan from the Japan Sea side, and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) decided to hold a press conference which was broadcasted on TV to warn people in the evening of April 4.
And:
Mr. Uchida said, "The wind speed in Kanto is expected to be 25 meters per second, which is almost like a typhoon wind. We expect the wind to be stronger than in the last weekend. In particular, from 6PM to 9PM, it is possible that the wind will be so strong that people may get knocked down by the wind. Transportation may be affected as it may be dangerous to drive a car. So tomorrow, take ample precaution by going home earlier than usual, or by not going out unless it is necessary to do so."
Side Note: If Tokyo is irradiated, I say we give Japan Detroit. The Japanese bring the revenue, the people, and the technology to rejuvenate Detroit. They remake the city in their technological image. The Japanese find Safe Haven. And Detroit rises again. I like that scenario.. The whole Detroit metro area looking like present day Hiroshima..
Powered by alternative energies, of course.. That's a nice pipe dream, right?
[...] One of the biggest issues that we face is the possibility that the spent nuclear fuel pool of the No. 4 reactor at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant will collapse. This is something that experts from both within and outside Japan have pointed out since the massive quake struck. [...] not only independent experts, but also sources within the government say that it’s a grave concern.
(...)The storage pool in the No. 4 reactor building has a total of 1,535 fuel rods, or 460 tons of nuclear fuel, in it. The 7-story building itself has suffered great damage, with the storage pool barely intact on the building’s third and fourth floors. The roof has been blown away. If the storage pool breaks and runs dry, the nuclear fuel inside will overheat and explode, causing a massive amount of radioactive substances to spread over a wide area. Both the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and French nuclear energy company Areva have warned about this risk.
(...)A report released in February by the Independent Investigation Commission on the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Accident stated that the storage pool of the plant’s No. 4 reactor has clearly been shown to be “the weakest link” in the parallel, chain-reaction crises of the nuclear disaster. The worse-case scenario drawn up by the government includes not only the collapse of the No. 4 reactor pool, but the disintegration of spent fuel rods from all the plant’s other reactors. If this were to happen, residents in the Tokyo metropolitan area would be forced to evacuate.
And:
“Because sea water was being pumped into the reactor, the soundness of the structure (concrete corrosion and deterioration) was questionable. There also were doubts about the calculations made on earthquake resistance as well,” (Emphasis author)said one government source familiar with what took place at the time. “[...] fuel rod removal will take three years. Will the structure remain standing for that long? Burying the reactor in a concrete grave is like building a dam, and therefore expensive. I think that it was because TEPCO’s general shareholders’ meeting was coming up (in June 2011) that the company tried to keep expenses low.” [...]
That's some pretty awesome short-term, Bottom-Line thinking, yeah? Is killing your customer base a very sound business strategy? Fukushima is perilously close to becoming an Undisputed Global Event (If Reactor 4's Spent Fuel Pool does indeed go, believe me, You Will Know..), yet won't drop the cash needed to reign in this Catastrophe of Unknown and Unimaginable Magnitude. So it's a good bet that something horrible will happen, as really, it's already happening.. Already.
Why should you care? If you're in the Midwestern United States, chew on this: Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant is at 37 Degrees North Latitude. Kansas City, Missouri is at 39 Degrees North Latitude. I have said this before, but on the good chance you haven't seen it before: The United States is, globally, downwind from Fukushima. And it's not like the earthquakes have stopped, either. And it's not like there's some freak storm coming in from the Sea of Japan.. Wait; There is? My mistake..
(Updated) Japan Meteorological Agency's Highly Unusual Storm Warning on TV: "Don't Go Outside" EX-SKF. Don't forget to watch the wind direction video! Excerpts:
The warning comes from the government agency that prohibited its own researchers from disclosing any information regarding the dispersion of radioactive materials right after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident. Many on Twitter are saying, "Why didn't they say the same thing on March 15 and 21 last year and warn us about radioactive plumes from Fukushima?"
Well, the answer is easy. Because issuing warnings about radioactive material dispersions was not in their job description. It still isn't.
Anyway, a highly unusual low is about to sweep through entire Japan from the Japan Sea side, and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) decided to hold a press conference which was broadcasted on TV to warn people in the evening of April 4.
And:
Mr. Uchida said, "The wind speed in Kanto is expected to be 25 meters per second, which is almost like a typhoon wind. We expect the wind to be stronger than in the last weekend. In particular, from 6PM to 9PM, it is possible that the wind will be so strong that people may get knocked down by the wind. Transportation may be affected as it may be dangerous to drive a car. So tomorrow, take ample precaution by going home earlier than usual, or by not going out unless it is necessary to do so."
Side Note: If Tokyo is irradiated, I say we give Japan Detroit. The Japanese bring the revenue, the people, and the technology to rejuvenate Detroit. They remake the city in their technological image. The Japanese find Safe Haven. And Detroit rises again. I like that scenario.. The whole Detroit metro area looking like present day Hiroshima..
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