TEPCO

Fukushima: Rain From Approaching Typhoon Likely To Induce More Radioactive Leaks

by

Related info:

– Super Typhoon With 195 Mph Winds Approaching Fukushima

– Rain likely to induce more radioactive leaks (NHK, May 28, 2011):

The operator of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says it is closely monitoring contaminated water levels in the facility as heavy rain is forecast next week.

Tokyo Electric Power Company is continuing to inject water to cool reactors. As a result, the level of highly radioactive water around reactor buildings is rising.

The company is concerned that contaminated water in the basement of reactor buildings and nearby tunnels may overflow and seep into the ground and the sea.

Rain is forecast on Sunday and Monday because of an approaching typhoon.

Read moreFukushima: Rain From Approaching Typhoon Likely To Induce More Radioactive Leaks

Russian Nuclear Expert: Fukushima Meltdown Worse Than Chernobyl

by

– Fukushima melt-down worse than Chernobyl (Voice of Russia, May 24, 2011):

The situation at the quake-hit Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan appears to have fit into the worst predicted scenario. Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), which operates Fukushima, has officially admitted that fuel rods at the Fukushima reactors have partially melted, with a melt-down registered at one of the reactors. Remarkably, the announcement came on Tuesday when IAEA delegations arrived in Japan to inspect the power plant.

Read moreRussian Nuclear Expert: Fukushima Meltdown Worse Than Chernobyl

New Leak Feared At Stricken Japan Nuclear Plant (Reuters)

by

– New leak feared at stricken Japan nuclear plant (Reuters, May 26, 2011):

Radioactive water appears to be leaking from a waste disposal building at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear complex, operator Tokyo Electric Power said on Thursday, in a new setback to the battle to contain radiation from the crippled power plant.

Read moreNew Leak Feared At Stricken Japan Nuclear Plant (Reuters)

Study By Japanese Expert: 600 Square Km Area At Chernobyl Level For Compulsory Migration, Additional 700 Square Km Area At Contamination Level For Temporary Migration

by

– Soil contamination from Fukushima crisis comparable to Chernobyl: study (Japan Times, May 25, 2011):

TOKYO — Radiation released by the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has caused soil contamination matching the levels seen in the Chernobyl disaster in some areas, a researcher told the government’s nuclear policy-setting body Tuesday. ‘‘A massive soil decontamination project will be indispensable before residents in those areas can return,’’ said Tomio Kawata, a research fellow of the Nuclear Waste Management Organization of Japan, at the meeting of the Japan Atomic Energy Commission, which sets policies and strategies for the government’s nuclear power development.

According to Kawata, soil in a 600 square kilometer area mostly to the northwest of the Fukushima plant is likely to have absorbed radioactive cesium of over 1.48 million becquerels per square meter, the yardstick for compulsory migration orders in the 1986 Chernobyl catastrophe.

Kawata also said soil in a 700 square km area is likely to have absorbed 555,000-1.48 million becquerels per square meter, which was a criteria for temporary migration during the Chernobyl disaster.

Read moreStudy By Japanese Expert: 600 Square Km Area At Chernobyl Level For Compulsory Migration, Additional 700 Square Km Area At Contamination Level For Temporary Migration

TEPCO: Fukushima Containment Vessels (Meant To Stop Radiation) May Be Breached – Additional Source Of Radiation Leaks May Exceed Chernobyl

by

– Fukushima Reactor Containment Vessels Are Leaking, Tepco Says (Bloomberg):

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the containment chambers of two of three damaged reactors at its Fukushima nuclear plant may have been breached.

May 25 Bloomberg — Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the containment chambers of two of three damaged reactors at its Fukushima nuclear plant may have been breached.

The company known as Tepco said computer analysis of the meltdowns of three reactors at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant indicate the No. 1 chamber has one hole and the No. 2 unit has two breaches, according to a report filed a Japanese nuclear watchdog.

Containment chambers surround the reactor vessel, which holds the fuel rods, and are meant to stop radiation and coolant leaks in the case of overheating.

Tepco yesterday confirmed meltdowns of fuel rods in the No. 2 and 3 reactors at the station north of Tokyo, which has been emitting radiation since an earthquake and tsunami knocked out power and cooling systems on March 11.

– Fukushima Containment Vessels May Be Leaking, Tepco Says (Bloomberg):

May 25 (Bloomberg) — Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the containment chambers of damaged reactors at its Fukushima nuclear plant were likely breached, identifying additional source of radiation leaks that may exceed Chernobyl.

Computer simulations of the meltdowns of three reactors in March indicates holes formed in chambers, the company known as Tepco said in a report.

The analysis confirms what independent researchers have said occurred after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami hit the plant. The report to the government raises fresh questions about how Tepco, which took more than two months to acknowledge fuel rods had melted, is handling the crisis, a nuclear researcher said.

“Unfortunately I can’t find any consistency in the report,” Hironobu Unesaki, a nuclear engineering professor at Kyoto University, said by phone. “Tepco hasn’t released sufficient radionuclide analysis of leaked contaminated water. Now they’ve confirmed fuel rods melted, they should also release more data including plutonium and uranium readings.”

Containment chambers surround the reactor vessel, which holds the fuel rods, and are meant to stop radiation and coolant leaks in the case of overheating.

Read moreTEPCO: Fukushima Containment Vessels (Meant To Stop Radiation) May Be Breached – Additional Source Of Radiation Leaks May Exceed Chernobyl

Fukushima: Multiple 10-Centimeter Holes in Reactor 2 Containment Vessel

by

– Multiple 10-Centimeter Holes in Reactor 2 Containment Vessel at #Fukushima I Nuke Plant:

So says the Mainichi Shinbun reporters who must be reading the report submitted by TEPCO on May 23 and released on May 24.

Multiple 10-centimeter holes in the Reactor 2 Containment Vessel, and one 7-centimeter hole in the Reactor 1 Containment Vessel.

Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University was so right. The Containment Vessels’ integrity has been long gone. TEPCO should have known all along, and all the experts, including Koide, must have known.

From Mainichi Shinbun Japanese (2:30AM JST 5/25/2011):

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

In the report that TEPCO disclosed on May 24 regarding the core meltdown in the Reactors 2 and 3, the possibility of holes in the Containment Vessels of the Reactors 1 and 2 is mentioned for the first time. The Reactor 1 Containment Vessel may have a hole 7-centimeter in diameter, and the Reactor 2 Containment vessel may have multiple holes 10-centimeter in diameter.

According to the Mainichi article, TEPCO came to the conclusion of multiple 10-centimeter holes in the Reactor 2 Containment Vessel and one 7-centimeter hole in the Reactor 1 Containment Vessel from the analysis of the pressure data.

More from Prof. Hiroaki Koide:

– Japan Is Waking Up!!! – Prof. Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University: ‘Pressure Not To Release Radiation Data’

– Prof. Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University: ‘No One Knows How Fukushima Could Be Wound Down’ – Corium May Be Melting Through the Foundation

– Prof. Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University: Molten Core Of Reactor No. 1 NOW Outside Of Containment Vessel

– Kyoto University Prof. Hiroaki Koide NOW Says ‘Reactor 1 May Be Undergoing ‘Recriticality’

TEPCO Admits The Obvious After 2 Months: Full Meltdown In Reactors 2 And 3 Likely

by

– TEPCO Stating the Obvious After 2 Months: Reactors 2, 3 Total Meltdown More Likely

Here we go. It’s official now. All three reactors at Fukushima I Nuke Plant had a total meltdown. What a surprise. We’re so shocked, aren’t we?

– Yomiuri Shinbun (3:03AM JST 5/24/2011):

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

TEPCO reported on May 23 that the Reactors 2 and 3 at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant had a core meltdown just like the Reactor 1, based on their analysis on the reactor parameters right after the earthquake on March 11.

????????????????????

The company will submit the report to METI’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.

???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????

In the report, TEPCO did two simulations regarding the Reactors 2 and 3: 1st, based on the assumption that the water level was what the water gauge had been showing all along; 2nd, based on the assumption that the data from the water gauge were not to be trusted, and the fuel rods were completely exposed, as in the Reactor 1. In both cases, the result showed that the nuclear fuel had melted and dropped to the bottom of the Reactor Pressure Vessel. In the 2nd case where they assumed the faulty water gauge, the result showed the entire fuel rods had melted, according to the report.

 

TEPCO Official: (Radioactive) ‘Vapor’ Is Still Being Seen At Reactors No. 2, 3 and 4 Spent Fuel Pools (WSJ)

by

– Tepco Plans New System to Cool Reactors (Wall Street Journal, May 22, 2011):

TOKYO—Tokyo Electric Power Co. Inc. said Sunday it aims to establish a water-circulation system to ensure continuous cooling of the spent-fuel pools at its stricken Fukushima Daiichi reactors by the end of July.

The troubled utility, known as Tepco, said it plans to build a cooling system with water-circulation pumps and heat-exchange equipment by the end of May at the reactor No. 2 spent-fuel pool, by June at the reactors No. 1 and No. 3 pools, and it plans to have an even more advanced cooling system for the No. 4 reactor pool by July, Tepco official Junichi Matsumoto told a news conference in Tokyo on Sunday.

The reactor No. 4 spent-fuel pool generates more heat than the others, he said, because the rods that have remaining active life are in it.

The new cooling systems would continuously remove radioactive decay heat, lower the amount of water vapor from the spent fuel pools and ensure fuel rods are kept under water, the company said. The establishment of a stable cooling function at the spent fuel pools is an integral part of the company’s ultimate goal of bringing the stricken power plant under control.

Mr. Matsumoto said vapor is still seen sometimes from the spent fuel pools at reactors No. 2, 3 and 4, depending on the weather and wind direction of the day.

Report: Fukushima Reactor No. 1 ‘Exploded’ After Full Meltdown On March 12 Spewing Radiation Into The Atmosphere – Similar Pattern Of Disaster Befell Reactors 2 and 3

by

– Fukushima plant probably began spewing radiation within hours of earthquake: data (National Post, May 21, 2011):

Data released for the first time this week show three of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors probably began spewing radiation within a few hours of Japan’s devastating earthquake and at least one may have gone into a full meltdown within about 15 hours of the tsunami striking the plant and shutting off its cooling systems.

Yet for the first days of the disaster, the plant’s operators and Japan’s nuclear safety regulators studiously avoided using the word “meltdown.” They repeatedly said they believed the reactors’ fuel rods were still intact and safely contained inside their zirconium sheaths.

In reality, the rods in the core of the No. 1 reactor had fully melted by the morning of March 12 and had fallen to the bottom of the reactor’s pressure vessel.

The documents show the plant’s managers dithered over whether or not to vent the reactor to reduce a build-up of dangerous pressure inside.

When they did decide to act, seven hours after being ordered to do so by the government, they discovered the vent system was inoperable, probably having been damaged in the earthquake, and had to be activated by hand.

By that time, radiation levels in the reactor were so high, volunteers could only spend a few minutes taking turns to crank the vents open.

In the end, the build-up of pressure from steam and explosive hydrogen gas was so great, the reactor exploded, damaging its outer containment walls and spewing radiation into the atmosphere.

A similar pattern of disaster befell the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors. Japanese officials now believe all three reactors may be leaking highly radioactive water outside the containment buildings as a result of damage caused to their pressure vessels by suspected meltdowns.

Read moreReport: Fukushima Reactor No. 1 ‘Exploded’ After Full Meltdown On March 12 Spewing Radiation Into The Atmosphere – Similar Pattern Of Disaster Befell Reactors 2 and 3

Fukushima Reactor No. 3 May Blow – Wrecked Buildings Full Of Radiation, Humidity, Heat (Video)

by


Watch the video here.

– Humidity, heat, radiation in reactor buildings (NHK, May 20, 2011):

At the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, high radiation levels and humidity in the reactor buildings are hampering efforts to stabilize the reactors. The utility urgently needs to improve conditions so that people can work in the buildings.

On Wednesday, staff entered reactor buildings No. 2 and 3 to survey radiation levels for the first time since the explosions at the plant. This followed a survey at the No.1 reactor.

At the No.2 reactor they found peak radiation levels of 50 millisieverts per hour. They also experienced high humidity and intense heat, which limited the work there only to 15 minutes.

At the No.3 building the team detected 160 to 170 millisieverts of radiation per hour near a pipe connected to the reactor. The pipe was to be used to inject nitrogen to prevent a hydrogen explosion.

To improve the working conditions at the No.2 building, Tokyo Electric Power Company is planning to set up a cooling system to lower the temperature of a spent fuel pool which is causing the humidity.

But the company says the system will become operational at the end of May at the earliest, and that work inside will not be possible for the time being.

As for the No. 3 reactor building, the utility says they may have to find another way to inject nitrogen and also shield staff from the radiation in order to work inside.

These difficulties may affect the company’s road map to stabilize the reactors.

Before:

– TEPCO: Reactor No.3 High Radiation Levels Make It ‘Difficult’ To Start Nitrogen Injections NEEDED To Prevent Hydrogen Blast (Video) (!!!):

The utility says it would be difficult to start work on injecting nitrogen gas needed to prevent a hydrogen blast into the containment vessel under such high radiation levels.

Only Now TEPCO Admits That Fukushima ‘May’ Release More Radiation Than Chernobyl

by

– Japan’s Fukushima Reactor May Have Leaked Radiation Before Tsunami Struck (Bloomberg, May 19, 2011):

Japan’s government in April raised the severity rating of the Fukushima crisis to the highest on an international scale, the same level as the Chernobyl disaster. The station, which has experienced hundreds of aftershocks since March 11, may release more radiation than Chernobyl before the crisis is contained, Tepco officials have said.

TEPCO criminals!

– Prof. Chris Busby: ‘There’s No Doubt Fukushima Dwarfs Chernobyl’ – ‘There Has Been A Massive Cover-Up And That Cover-Up Is Still Going On (The Negative Health Effects Of Low-Dose Radiation From Fukushima!!!)

Fukushima: Radioactive Cesium In Seawater Samples Near Reactor 3 Triples In A Day, Now At 1,800 Times Limit (Video)

by

Watch the video here.

– Radiation level at No.3 reactor water intake rises (NHK, May 19, 2011):

The operator of the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima has reported a sharp rise in the concentration of a radioactive material in samples of seawater near the Number 3 reactor.

Tokyo Electric Power Company says it detected 110 becquerels of radioactive cesium-134 per cubic centimeters in seawater samples taken on Wednesday morning.

The level is 1,800 times the national legal limit, compared to 550 times, which was reported the previous day.

The utility also found 120 becquerels of cesium-137, 1,300 times higher than the limit.

Read moreFukushima: Radioactive Cesium In Seawater Samples Near Reactor 3 Triples In A Day, Now At 1,800 Times Limit (Video)

TEPCO: Reactor No.3 High Radiation Levels Make It ‘Difficult’ To Start Nitrogen Injections NEEDED To Prevent Hydrogen Blast (Video)

by

Watch the video here.

– Workers enter No.3 reactor (NHK, May 19, 2011):

Workers have entered the Number 3 reactor building at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant for the first time since a hydrogen explosion 3 days after the March 11th quake and tsunami.

Tokyo Electric Power Company says 2 workers in protective suits and carrying air tanks went inside for about 10 minutes from 4:30 PM Wednesday to check radiation levels.

TEPCO says the workers measured radiation of 160 to 170 millisieverts per hour around the door of the containment vessel.

The utility says it would be difficult to start work on injecting nitrogen gas needed to prevent a hydrogen blast into the containment vessel under such high radiation levels.

Read moreTEPCO: Reactor No.3 High Radiation Levels Make It ‘Difficult’ To Start Nitrogen Injections NEEDED To Prevent Hydrogen Blast (Video)

No. 6 Reactor Has Up To 2 Meters Of Contaminated Groundwater In Turbine Building, Water Flowing Into Reactor Building May Cause Emergency Power System To Cool The Reactor To Fail

by

From the article:

In the turbine building of the No. 6 reactor, for example, contaminated groundwater has seeped in and accumulated to a depth of up to 2 meters. If water flows into a reactor building, the emergency power system to cool the reactor may stop operating. Pumping started on May 1, and 1,700 tons of water were transferred to a makeshift tank and other facilities by Tuesday. To store water contaminated with low-level radioactive materials, TEPCO must build tanks to store about 16,000 tons of water for the coming month alone.

Related info:

– And Now … Special Adviser To Japanese Government: US Made ‘Strong Request’ To Dump Radioactive Water Into Ocean

– Poor estimates force timetable revision (The Yomiuri Shimbun, May. 19, 2011):

Having failed to accurately grasp the extent of actual damage to nuclear reactors and the amount of water contaminated with radioactive substances, Tokyo Electric Power Co. has been forced to revise its timetable for resolving the nuclear crisis at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

The plant operator released Tuesday an updated version of its road map to end the crisis, making some changes to critical aspects of the plan, especially in regards to cooling the reactors. It has been more than two months since the crisis began following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

TEPCO had to review its strategy on cooling the reactors as it learned about an apparent leakage of a huge amount of contaminated water from a damaged containment vessel.

The company said an estimated 87,500 tons of contaminated water has accumulated in the turbine buildings of the Nos. 1 to 4 reactors and elsewhere at the site. On Saturday, about 3,000 tons of contaminated water, which likely leaked from the containment vessel of the No. 1 reactor, was discovered in underground areas of the reactor building. Water had been pumped in to attempt to fill the containment vessel of the reactor and cool the fuel inside.

Read moreNo. 6 Reactor Has Up To 2 Meters Of Contaminated Groundwater In Turbine Building, Water Flowing Into Reactor Building May Cause Emergency Power System To Cool The Reactor To Fail

Fukushima Worker On His Measured Internal Radiation Level Of 30,000 CPM: ‘My Measured Value Exceeded The Standard Value By A Double-Digit Factor. That’s Never Happened Before’

by

– Radiation tests lacking / Nuclear plant workers unsure of internal exposure levels (The Yomiuri Shimbun, May 19, 2011):

Nearly two months after the start of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, only 10 percent of workers there had been tested for internal radiation exposure caused by inhalation or ingestion of radioactive substances, due to a shortage of testing equipment available for them.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the crippled nuclear compound, is finding it impossible to use testing apparatus set up inside the facility because of high radiation levels recorded near the equipment.

A number of personnel working to overcome the nuclear crisis at the facility are increasingly alarmed by their lack of internal exposure testing. Some have said they may have to continue to work at the facility without knowing whether their radiation exposure levels have exceeded the upper limit set by the government.

On Tuesday, the government revealed a timetable for ending the nuclear crisis. The road map called for increased surveillance of the workers’ radiation levels, including a measure requiring TEPCO to periodically report such data to the government.

Internal exposure is caused by taking radioactive substances into the body via eating, drinking or breathing. Its unit, counts per minute (cpm), indicates the amount of radiation emitted per minute.

Regulations on preventing health problems caused by ionizing radiation require operators of power plants to conduct internal exposure tests every three months on plant employees who enter areas designated by laws and regulations on radiation-related health problems.

“My measured value [of radioactive exposure] exceeded the standard value by a double-digit factor. That’s never happened before,” said a plant worker in his 20s, recalling the time he saw the results of a test he took outside Fukushima Prefecture in early May.

The man, an employee of a company that works with TEPCO, installed power cables near a reactor building at the plant for a month beginning at the end of March.

The test is conducted by a device called a “whole-body counter.”

While a normal internal radiation level would range from several hundred cpm to 1,000 cpm, he was told his level was 30,000 cpm.

Read moreFukushima Worker On His Measured Internal Radiation Level Of 30,000 CPM: ‘My Measured Value Exceeded The Standard Value By A Double-Digit Factor. That’s Never Happened Before’

TEPCO Lied And Will Continue To Lie To The Public And The Entire World About Fukushima Crisis

by

Related info:

– TEPCO: Complete Meltdown In Reactor 1 Within Hours After March Earthquake

Flashback:

On the day the tsunami hit it has been known that there was a meltdown going on:

Listen to the interview with the former editor of the Japan Times Yochi Shimatsu on March 12:

– Japan: Full Core Meltdown Will Send Radiation Over United States

– Japan And US Try To Coverup Nuclear Catastrophe

– Tepco Misleading Public Over Nuclear Crisis (Bloomberg, May 18, 2011):

Tokyo Electric Power Co. has made misleading statements about when it will stabilize its nuclear reactors crippled by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, said Tetsuo Ito, head of the Atomic Energy Research Institute at Kinki University in western Japan.

Read moreTEPCO Lied And Will Continue To Lie To The Public And The Entire World About Fukushima Crisis

Japan Times – SENTAKU MAGAZINE: Obama Administration Urged Japan Japanese Government To Take Steps To Prevent A Further Decline In TEPCO Stock’

by

– The new enervated Tepco (Japan Times – SENTAKU MAGAZINE):

If worse comes to worst, Tepco share certificates would become worthless sheets of paper for 600,000 shareholders as well as for many corporate pension funds that have included Tepco stock in their portfolios. The steep drop in Tepco’s stock price has already dealt a blow to investment funds in the United States. Nearly 20 percent of its stock is held by non-Japanese investors. This has reportedly led the Obama administration to urge the Kan government to take steps to prevent a further decline in Tepco stock.