Fukushima

UPDATE, 10:00 am, Thursday, The International Atomic Energy Agency has reported that levels of Cesium-137 in areas outside the emergency evacuation zone (especially near Iitate Village, 40 kilometers—24 miles away) are more than twice as high than levels the Soviets established for relocation from the Chernobyl area. The IAEA said cesium levels are up to 3.7 megabecquerels per square meter (MBq/sq. m) in that area. Soviet guidelines required relocation when Cesium levels reached 1.48 MBq/sq. m. This is adding to pressure on the Japanese government to expand the evacuation zone.

UPDATE, 3:00 pm, Monday, On this 32nd anniversary of the Three Mile Island accident, we want to point out that people were affected by that accident too. Here is a chronology from Three Mile Island Alert on health effects of the TMI accident.

UPDATE, 11:30 am, Monday, TEPCO has confirmed that radiation levels in water inside the damaged reactors is about 100 rems (1 Sievert) per hour. Apparently that’s only 100,000 times above normal, not 10 million times. Somehow doesn’t make us feel better…. There are several reports this morning that this highly-radioactive water, which so far has been limited to inside the reactor buildings, has begun to seep outside.

UPDATE, Noon, Sunday, There appears to be growing confusion and contradictory reports about radiation levels at the Fukushima site and in nearby communities. For example, on Friday we reported (see below, 10 am update), that 3 contaminated workers were said to have experienced a dose rate of about 20 rems/hour, but that that level seemed low for the injuries reported. On Saturday, the New York Times confirmed that the actual levels encountered by the workers were 2-6 Sieverts, or 200-600 rems/hour. The Times noted that a whole body exposure of 400 rems would be expected to kill half the people exposed. It is unlikely that these workers received a whole body dose of that level. However, it is still a serious situation.

UPDATE, 11:00 am, Friday, Greenpeace Germany has released a statement that, according to an analysis of radiation releases by consultant Dr. Helmut Hirsch, Fukushima is now a Level 7 accident on the international scale (currently it is officially ranked as a Level 5, comparable to the Three Mile Island accident of 1979; Level 7 would make it comparable to Chernobyl).

UPDATE, 10:00 am, Friday, Three workers were treated yesterday for contamination after walking in highly radioactive water in Unit 3 that is said to have had a dose rate of 20 rems/hour—about 10,000 times above normal. However, even that rate wouldn’t be high enough to cause the burns that were reported on the workers, so there is suspicion that the rates were even higher. Radioactive elements were found in the water that are not normally found in reactor cooling water.

UPDATE, 3:30 pm, Thursday, Japanese officials said today that infants—even outside the evacuation zone—could have received doses of 10 rems to their thyroids from Iodine-131 over the past two weeks. This would apply to infants who had stayed outdoors every day. Infants are much more susceptible to radiation than adults.