Breaking:Explosion at Tepco's Fukushima Daiichi plant heard around 0630 GMT

reuters ^ | 3-12-11

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Just in:

Explosion at Tepco's Fukushima Daiichi plant heard around 0630 GMT

NHK footage shows steam-like smoke coming from Tepco's Fukushima plant

[PennsylvaniaMom]

Just read on Drudge that they are going to pump sea water into the containment area (with boric acid) to facilitate cooling. Explains why building on the coastline was done (access to huge volume of water).

There is actually a FR thread right now questioning why our NRC isn’t ‘out infront’ giving news conferences. About a fluid situation (EQs still occurring) and real time engineering being done. Think of the minute to minute decisions the Japanese engineers are making.

[mewzilla]

From this link....

Explosion Devastates Reactor Building at Japan Nuclear Plant - 50,000 Evacuated

Ironically, Unit 1 was scheduled to be shutdown and decommissioned in March, 2011.

[justa-hairyape]

Nothing in common with Japan's reactor designs.

The reactor that had an explosion and has suffered a partial meltdown was built by GE. Its steam generation system was also built by GE. Many moons ago.

[chainsaw]

Then what else would explode?....

I think they said it was accumulation of Hydrogen. I personally think it was more than that!

[justa-hairyape]

Apparently they are now distributing iodine to the people, from Fox.

As another Freeper so aptly stated, pay attention to what they do, not what they say. And what they are doing is very dramatic.

[listenhillary]

Oxygen

[SE Mom]

Just waking up from a couple hour nap. Trying to get up to speed. I’m reading the Daiichi plant is going to be surrounded with sea water- cooling it down. This is the one we worried was in meltdown last night- and it appears the other one has been cooled down- so I’m wondering if it’s time for guarded optimism regarding meltdown(s)?

Now I’ll go get coffee ;)

[justa-hairyape]

...and venting into the containment structure and apparently into the outer building.

Is venting into the containment building a normal procedure ?

[justa-hairyape]

Good news on the three that were shutdown successfully. But it was and still is a nightmare even for the successfully shutdown reactors. Read this report which is for the second plant that they are supposedly no longer worried about.

Plant Status of Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Station (as of 3PM arch 12th )

[caww]

Yes indeed.

[spunkets]

"Think of the minute to minute decisions the Japanese engineers are making."

They should have been doing that before all their stuff got wet.

"they are going to pump sea water into the containment area (with boric acid) to facilitate cooling. Explains why building on the coastline was done (access to huge volume of water)."

The seawater was intended for cooling use in a heat exchanger system at a much lower temperature. Using sea water(with borate) in the reactor side is a last ditch panic effort to keep it cool. The chloride is going to cause a much higher corrosion/hydrogen generation rate and they'll have to keep venting rather than containing.

[grey_whiskers]

Lighten up, Francis.

[fred2008]

Yep. Nothing to do with Chernobyl’s design.

[justa-hairyape]

Yikes. Gonna get some rest myself. Here is the latest blurb from the BBC.

1349: A team from the National Institute of Radiological Sciences has been despatched to Fukushima as a precaution, reports NHK. It is reportedly made up of doctors, nurses and other individuals with expertise in dealing with radiation exposure, and has been taken by helicopter to a base 5km from the nuclear plant.

[chainsaw]

O2 supports combustion but will not explode. H2 will

[spunkets]

"Is venting into the containment building a normal procedure?"

Not like this. Normally there is very little corrosion occurring in the reactor. The explosion indicated a large amount of corrosion occurred from an overheated core that had water dumped on it. The hydrogen produced as a corrosion product has to be vented and the design has it going through containment and building spaces after relief valves are opened.

[sunmars]

The whole town of Minamisanriku is missing, the hospital is the only thing left standing, the earthquake pushed it right up out of the ground, 10,000 approx missing, terrible.

[Red Boots]

ping for later

[Zeppo]

Now an earthquake warning in Niigata Prefecture.

[PennsylvaniaMom]

Apparently they have contingencies in place ‘for when their stuff gets wet.’ They are using those protocols NOW in a situation that is still feeling 6.0 and higher aftershocks.

This was the oldest unit; set for decommissionj damaged by the worst EQ Japan has ever had (and 20% of worlds EQ are in Japan). Nothing on earth is failsafe. To criticize from half a world away with ‘make America third world’ adminstration in place is just wrong. Obama has said he intends to make coal powered plants financially prohibitive...he has stopped almost all domestic drilling. Now much needed, SAFE nuclear power will be vilified (due to a doomsday scenario).