“The problem is that the media appears to be using the word “containment” to describe the reactor vessel itself, not the containment vessel that is designed to hold in even a full meltdown. This leads to conflicting reports.”
Yes, inaccurate and inconsistent language is a barrier to communications. And also, there are levels of containment which can further obscure understanding.
I think at one of the reactors all levels have been breached. Probably at #4, where there has been a fire or two, an explosion which damaged the weather shell and also may have damaged the outermost container, and exposure of fuel rods to air in a storage pool when water levels dropped. Those rods were not inside the reactor vessel.
But who knows? I’m piecing this together.
Glenn Beck did a fairly good job yesterday doing nuclear containment for dummies, but the number of probable scenarios went up since then.