Showing posts with label Gregory Jaczko. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gregory Jaczko. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

NRC Issues Warnings About Spent-Fuel Pool, Evacuation Zone in Japan


Nuclear Regulatory Commission Issues Dire Nuclear Warning about Japan ; Radiation Levels Are So High That Evacuation Zone Should Be Larger.

Earlier today, the top nuclear regulator in the United States said that the Fukushima nuclear power plant was more dangerous than being described by the Japanese government.

''Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko said the spent-fuel pools at Fukushima Daiichi's Unit 4 reactor may be empty and a crack may be present in the spent-fuel pool for the No. 3 reactor. Without proper cooling, spent-fuel rods will continue to heat and potentially ignite, dispersing radioactive elements and making an already complicated situation evermore difficult to contain.''

More information about the NRC's statement from earlier today :

''... 'We believe that there is no water in the spent-fuel pool known as No. 4, and I would say that it is my great hope that the information that we have is not accurate,' Mr. Jaczko added. 'I would hope for the sake of everyone that the situation is not at the state that we think it is.'

''Meanwhile, Tokyo Electric Power Co., the nuclear plant operator, denied Jaczko's assessment, saying that the "condition is stable" at Unit 4, according to the AP.'' ...

Not only is the U.S. nuclear regulator issuing a more dire warning about the situation at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, but the U.S. is also calling for a larger evacuation area in Japan.