[AnAmericanAbroad]

I'm skeptical of AP, but if true this is an "We're boned" moment (If someone would kindly post a photo of Bender, it'd be appreciated). It's possible that the NRC source is clueless, but OTOH, it could be that TEPCO is trying to cover up, or at least avoid panic. We'll see.

[americanophile]

If true, why not fly in an appropriate containment vessel and resubmerge the rods - at least the hot ones? I’m sure there are some in there that are older and have cooled also - those could be placed in dry casks immediately.

[cookcounty]

Dear Experts:

We keep getting the runaround when we ask “what is the worst-case scenario,” so let me make it just a little more direct: If for some bizarre reason all the personnel working on the site abandoned their positions for 90 days (i.e., no one on-site), what would happen?

[Ron C.]

No, not even locally is anyone ‘boned’ due to these pools - the ‘pools’ hold spent nuclear rods, which have an extremely small amount of energy left in them. However they too must be kept immersed in water, otherwise they will heat up enough to cause fairly mild problems - far different from that of the ‘fuel’ in the rods in the active reactors.

[glock rocks]

NHK Live: Helo is currently hovering over #3 & 4, checking out conditions, monitoring radiation. Two more helos with 7.5 tons water each are on the way. Police in water cannon trucks on ground ... waiting for go signal. They're going to douse #3 first because they can see and get to its spent fuel tank more readily. Water dumped on #3 now. 9:48

[Illuminatas]

your wish is my command "We're Boned!"