Japan’s struggle to contain the nuclear crisis has worsened as a second explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station rocked the nuclear complex Monday. The explosion destroyed an outer building at unit 3.
A Japanese government official said that a third reactor at the six-reactor facility had lost its cooling capacity, adding more complications for engineers to face as they try to limit the damage of a partial meltdown. Attempts at an emergency operation to pump seawater into one crippled reactor failed. This was considered a crucial step to preventing the reactor’s containment vessel from exploding, preventing the fuel inside from melting down, and decreasing the risk of of uncontrolled release of radioactive material.
As water levels fell inside the containment vessel, the fuel rods became exposed to critical levels, thus causing damage to all of Reactor 3, company executives said. Nuclear fuel rods appear to be melting inside all three of the most troubled reactors, according to Japanese officials.
The explosion at unit 3 did not damage the core containment structure. Japanese authorities asserted that there would be a little increase in radiation levels around the plant. However, following the explosion, which was a result of hydrogen build-up, Japan’s nuclear agency warned those within 12 miles to stay indoors and keep air conditioners off
The blast injured 11 people, one seriously.
UPDATE: SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 9:15 a.m. - An explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant today brought down the walls of a concrete building surrounding a nuclear reactor. The blast did not damage the building’s underlying metal structure or the reactor itself, according to governemnt spokesman Yukio Edano.
The video below shows the explosion.
Edano said radiation around the plant decreased after the blast, but did not provide a reason for the level change. Officials said radiation levels were elevated before the bast. No specific radiation readings for the region have been released.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, increases in radiation can raise long-term cancer rates. IAEA reported that officials are preparing to distribute iodine to residents living near the Fukushima Daiichi plant. According to the EPA, idoine prevents the thyroid gland from taking in radioactivity.
Edano also said the reactor’s pressure decreased after the blast.
Officials are now evacuating residents within a 12-mile radius of the plant. Around 51,000 residents were initially evacuated from a 6-mile radius.
Friday 5:45 pm- Officials in Japan have issued a state of emergency at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefectur where they say radiation levels have surged to 1.5 times the normal level.
About 3,000 people have already been asked to leave the area. The pressure of the Number 1 nuclear reactor has been rising since the cooling system was broken during the earthquake.
The Japanese trade ministry says that pressure at the nuclear plant is currently about 2.1 times higher than the designed capacity.
The increased temperatures at the reactor have led Japan’s Nuclear Safety Agency to announce they may have to release radioactive vapor from the reactor.
They say the radioactive element in the vapor would not affect the environment or human health.
As a precautionary measure, the Japanese Defense Ministry has sent dozens of troops trained to deal with chemical spills to the plant in case of a radiation leak.
Workers are trying to restore the cooling water supply at the plant but there is no timeline for when it may be fixed.
