Japan’s nuke-plant battle could take weeks, experts say

Associated Press

YAMAGATA, Japan

Emergency workers seemed to try everything they could think of Thursday to douse Japan’s most dangerously overheated nuclear reactors: helicopters, heavy-duty firetrucks, even water cannons normally used to quell rioters. But they couldn’t be sure any of it was easing the peril at the tsunami-ravaged facility.

Three reactors have had at least partial meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, where wisps of white steam rose from the stricken units this morning. But Japanese and U.S. officials believe a greater danger exists in the pools used to store spent nuclear fuel: Fuel rods in one pool were believed to be at least partially exposed, if not dry, and others were in danger. Without water, the rods could heat up and spew radiation.

It could take days and “possibly weeks” to get the complex under control, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jazcko said. He defended the U.S. decision to recommend a 50-mile evacuation zone for its citizens, a much stronger measure than Japan has taken.

A senior official with the U.N.’s nuclear safety agency said there had been “no significant worsening” at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant but that the situation remained “very serious.” Graham Andrew told reporters in Vienna that nuclear fuel rods in two reactors were only about half-covered with water, and they also were not completely submerged in a third.

If the fuel is not fully covered, rising temperatures will increase the chances of complete meltdowns that would release much larger amounts of radioactive material than the failing plant has emitted so far.

Low levels of radiation have been detected well beyond Tokyo, which is 140 miles south of the plant, but hazardous levels have been limited to the plant itself. Still, the crisis triggered by last week’s earthquake and tsunami has forced thousands to evacuate and drained Tokyo’s normally vibrant streets of life, its residents either leaving town or holing up in their homes.

The official death toll from the disasters stood at 5,692 as of this morning, with 9,522 missing, the national police agency said.

President Barack Obama appeared on television to assure Americans that officials do not expect harmful amounts of radiation to reach the U.S. or its territories. He also said the U.S. was offering Japan any help it could provide. He reaffirmed America’s commitment to nuclear power and said he was asking for a comprehensive safety review.