From CNN

Tsunami warnings issued for at least 20 countries after quake

By the CNN Wire Staff
March 11, 2011 -- Updated 0904 GMT (1704 HKT)


(CNN) -- Authorities in at least 20 countries and numerous Pacific islands issued tsunami warnings Friday after an 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck Japan, the National Weather Service said.

The wide-ranging list includes Russia and Indonesia, Central American countries like Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica and the U.S. state of Hawaii.
The quake, which struck near the coast of Honshu on Friday afternoon unleashed a wall of water that rushed in toward land, leveling houses and cars in its path.

Authorities in the U.S. territory of Guam said a tsunami could hit the island as early as 7:09 p.m. (4:09 a.m. ET). Sirens sounded in Hawaii around 10 p.m. Thursday (3 a.m. ET), warning residents they could expect tsunami waves five hours later.

In the Philippines, the government issued a warning for 19 provinces along the coast, possibly affecting hundreds of thousands of people. A tsunami could could hit by 6 p.m. (5 a.m. ET), it said.

Meanwhile, the regional government in eastern Taiwan's Taitung county canceled classes and work, but did not immediately begin evacuations.

Chip McCreary of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said officials estimated the quake was already causing waves with magnitudes of up to 2 meters above normal sea level.

"This is a very large earthquake. We've evaluated it as about the same size as the earthquake last year in Chile. However, it's much closer to the Hawaiian islands than the Chile earthquake," he said.

The National Weather Service list includes Japan, Russia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, Fiji, Mexico, New Zealand, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru and the United States.

Numerous Pacific islands, including some U.S. territories, are also on the list.

Friday's 8.9-magnitude temblor in Japan was the largest earthquake since a 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Banda Aceh area of Indonesia on Dec. 26, 2004, causing a massive tsunami that killed about 250,000 people in 14 countries and washed away entire communities. The tsunami caused nearly $10 billion in damage and more casualties than any other tsunami in history, according to the United Nations.

Tsunami waves can travel at speeds of 800 kilometers per hour. The earthquake, initially reported as a 7.8 earthquake, was upgraded to an 8.9 quake.

"When you jump a magnitude from 7 to 8, it's not 10 times stronger, it's a 1000 times stronger," said CNN International meteorologist Ivan Cabrera. "With an ... earthquake that shallow, that close to shore, there will be more than one tsunami."

This is a huge earthquake hitting close to a heavily populated area. The total number of fatalities could turn out to be as big as in Indonesia 2004.

From Aljazeera

Japan earthquake unleashes tsunami

Up to 19 reported people killed after 8.9-magnitude quake strikes off northeastern coast, sparking tsunami.

Last Modified: 11 Mar 2011 09:25 GMT


Up to 19 people have been killed after a massive 8.9-magnitude quake hit northeast Japan, causing a four-metre tsunami along parts of the country's coastline.

Japan's NHK television reported many injuries and showed pictures of major tsunami damage in the north, with cars, trucks and houses being swept away in Onahama city in Fukushima prefecture following the quake on Friday.

There was a warning that another strong quake could be imminent on the northeast Honshu island, Japan's main island.

A tsunami has been issued for most of the Pacific region, and the wave set off by the Japan quake is currently higher than some Pacific islands which it could wash over, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said.

"Our biggest concern is the Asia and Pacific region, where developing countries are far more vulnerable to this type of unfolding disaster. The tsunami is a major threat," Paul Conneally, spokesman for the Federation, the world's biggest disaster relief network, told Reuters in Geneva.

"At the moment, it is higher than some islands and could go right over them," he said.

Three people were crushed to death when their houses collapsed in Ibaraki prefecture, northeast of Tokyo.

The prime minister said in a televised address that the government was making "every effort possible" to minimise damage.

"The earthquake has caused major damage in broad areas in northern Japan," Naoto Kan said.

"Some of the nuclear power plant in the region have automatically shut down, but there is no leakage of radioactive materials to the environment."


Houses washed away

A 10-metre tsunami hit Sendai airport in the north-east. Television footage showed people standing on the roof of the terminal building.

The tsunami roared over embankments in Sendai city, washing cars, houses and farm equipment inland before reversing directions and carrying them out to sea. Flames shot from some of the houses, probably because of burst gas pipes.

Thirty international search and rescue teams stand ready to go to Japan to provide assistance following the quake, the United Nations said.

Military airplanes were flying over the worst-affected areas to assess the need for rescue efforts.

Many people were reported injured after a roof caved in during a school graduation ceremony at a hall in east Tokyo, the fire department in the capital said, after the quake hit.

Yukiko Shimahara, a Japanese journalist, told Al Jazeera that the airports and trains in Tokyo have been shut down following the quake.

Meanwhile, a huge fire engulfed an oil refinery in Iichihara near Tokyo, where four million homes were said to be without electricity. Plumes of smoke rose from at least 10 locations in city.

The quake that struck at 2:46pm was followed by a series of powerful aftershocks, including a 7.4-magnitude one about 30 minutes later.

Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan, reporting from Beijing, said tremors were felt as far away as the Chinese capital.

Japan's meteorological agency warned that a tsunami as high as six to 10 metres could strike the coast near Miyagi prefecture, closest to the epicentre and the US Geological Survey issued a tsunami warning for the entire Pacific coast of Japan.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii has widened its tsunami warning to cover most of the Pacific Ocean, including Russia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific coast of South America.

"An earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines near the epicentre within minutes and more distant coastlines within hours," the centre said in a statement.

It did not include North America in the warning but the Tsunami Warning Center in Alaska issued a tsunami watch for the entire western coast of the United States and Canada from the Mexican border to Chignik Bay in Alaska.

Al Jazeera's Marga Ortigas, reporting from Manila in the Philippines, said the military there had been ordered to help evacuate areas at risk on the east coast.

Several earthquakes have hit the region in recent days, including a 7.2-magnitude quake on Wednesday.

"Japan has been on high alert since the earthquake on Wednesday," Al Jazeera's Harry Fawcett, following developments from the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, said.

"Japan is very well equipped to deal both with the initial tremors caused by an earthquake: buildings are systematically built with allowances for sway so that they are less likely to fall down. Also coastal cities have long had tsunami protection measures in place."

Friday's quake struck at a depth of 24 kilometres, about 125 kilometres off the eastern coast, the country's meteorological agency said.

The quake was the biggest in 140 years. It surpasses the Great Kanto quake of 1923, which had a magnitude of 7.9 and killed more than 140,000 people in the Tokyo area.

Japan lies on the "Ring of Fire"- an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones that stretches around the Pacific Rim and where about 90 per cent of the world's quakes occur.

From the Wall Street Journal

Japan Issues Emergency at Nuclear Plant

By YUKA HAYASHI
MARCH 11, 2011, 7:16 A.M. ET


TOKYO—The Japanese government issued an official emergency at one of the country's nuclear plants Friday after a massive earthquake automatically shut down its reactors and caused problems with its cooling system, but said there are currently no reports of radiation leakage.

"There are no reports of leakage from any nuclear power plants at the moment and no signs of any leakage," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said Friday. As a result of the state of emergency, the government will set up a special emergency task force to deal with the situation.

At Tokyo Electric Power's Fukushima Daiichi plant, three reactors shut down automatically as designed after a magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck off the northeast of Japan on Friday afternoon. The quake also caused diesel-powered generators used to cool the reactors to stop operating, leaving the utility company with a shortage of coolant to bring the reactors to a safe temperature.

Meanwhile, the three reactors at Tohoku Electric Power Co.'s Onagawa plant in Miyagi, near the epicenter of the quake, also shut down automatically. A few hours later, the company said that it observed smoke coming from the building housing the No. 1 reactor at the plant. The company said it is still checking the safety of the reactor, but said there has been no reported leakage of radioactive substances.

French nuclear engineering group Areva said it hasn't been informed of any impact on its installations in the country. The company operates a joint venture with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. and Mitsubishi Corp. specialized in nuclear fuel called MNF, as well as a zirconium making plant, Cezus, which is a fully owned unit of Areva.

All other Japanese power companies operating nuclear power plants in the country said their facilities are operating normally.

Tokyo Electric filed a report after the shutdown with central and local government authorities. Such reports are filed when there are possibilities of radioactive leakage that may force evacuation of residents, or other emergencies, such as a loss of coolant needed to cool reactors.

Three reactors, with a combined generation capacities of 2.03 million kilowatts, are part of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, located on the Pacific coast in Fukushima prefecture north of Tokyo. The plant's three other reactors weren't operating at the time of the earthquake due to a routine checkup.

Tokyo Electric is the operator of Japan's largest nuclear power plant, known as Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, which was shut down for an extended period after a 2007 earthquake that devastated Niigata prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast. The loss of its generation capacity sent Tepco scurrying to boost generation at its thermal power plants. High costs of purchasing fuel oil hurt the company's earnings sharply. It also raised questions about building large nuclear power plants in earth-quake prone areas of the country. That plant wasn't affected by the latest quake.

Aljazeera now reports cooling water to be leaking from one of the nuclear reactors. Nothing in the printed press yet.

Only 19 people dead and the video footage is awesome. Japanese technology ftw.

__________________
Standard disclaimer: the disgusting statements contained in this post are the views of the poster, and unless specified do not represent the views of the moderators or the site's owners.

From the Guardian

Japan declares 'nuclear emergency' after quake

• Fukushima plant develops mechanical failure after shutdown
• Fire breaks out at Onagawa nuclear plant
• No radiation leaks reported from any power facilities, says PM

Justin McCurry in Osaka
guardian.co.uk
Friday 11 March 2011 11.45 GMT


The Japanese government has declared a nuclear power emergency situation following Friday's devastating earthquake, although the prime minister, Naoto Kan, said that there had been no reports of radiation leaks at any of the country's nuclear facilities.

The chief cabinet secretary, Yukio Edano, said the nuclear power plant in Fukushima developed a mechanical failure in the reactor cooling system after it was shut down during the earthquake.

He said the measure was a precaution and there was no radiation leak at the Fukushima No 1 power plant. He said the facility was not in immediate danger.

"Parts of nuclear plants were automatically shut down but we haven't confirmed any effects induced by radioactive materials outside the facilities," Kan said.

Separately, a fire broke out at Tohoku Electric Power Co's Onagawa nuclear plant in north-eastern Japan after the region was rocked by a series of powerful earthquakes and several tsunamis, some reportedly as high as 10 metres.

The blaze was in a building housing the turbine at the Onagawa plant in Miyagi prefecture. Smoke was observed coming out of the building, which is separate from the plant's reactor.

Eleven nuclear reactors were automatically shut down in the quake-affected area, the industry ministry said.

The four nuclear power plants closest to the epicentre of Friday's earthquake had all been safely shut down, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said, adding that it was seeking more information.

The danger is not over, however. Officials have warned of further strong aftershocks and tsunamis.

"The four Japanese nuclear power plants closest to the quake have been safely shut down," the IAEA said in a statement. "The agency has sent an offer of good offices to Japan, should the country request support."

From CNN

Japan struggling to 'cool down' nuclear plant, minister says

By the CNN Wire Staff
March 11, 2011 -- Updated 1801 GMT (0201 HKT)


Tokyo (CNN) -- Officials ordered an evacuation Friday of residents living near a Japanese nuclear power plant, saying there has been no sign yet of leaks but indicating a struggle to "cool down" one of the atomic facilities.

A 8.9-magnitude earthquake led to cooling problems and a fire at two of Japan's nuclear plants closest to its epicenter, said government officials.

Late Friday, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told reporters that people within 2 to 3 kilometers (1.2 to 1.8 miles) of the Fukushima Daiichi power plant have been told to leave the area. Those closer by -- within 3 to 10 kilometers -- were asked to stay home. Japan's Kyodo News Agency estimated that the evacuation order directly affected about 3,000 people.

"This is a precautionary instruction for people to evacuate," Edano said. "There is no radioactive leakage at this moment outside of the facility."

Yet Edano said the Fukushima Daiichi reactor "remains at a high temperature," because it "cannot cool down." The Kyodo agency reported Friday that the radiation level was rising in a turbine building at the plant.

That plant and three others were shut down following the quake, after Japan declared a state of atomic power emergency.

Cham Gallas, a professor of disaster management at the University of Georgia, said that it wouldn't be surprising if reactors get "both thermally hot and radioactively hot" after the reactors were shut down.

"When they shut down reactors, it takes a long time for them to go down," said Dallas. "It does not necessarily mean radioactive material got out of the reactor."

While authorities are "bracing for the scenario," the minister said, "At this moment, there is no danger to the environment."

Fire broke out at a second facility, the Onagawa plant, but crews were able to put that fire out, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The trouble at the Fukushima plant happened after the plant successfully shut down, Edano said. Crews had difficulty generating enough electricity to pump water into the facility to cool it, he said.

Janie Eudy told CNN that her husband, Joe, was working at the plant and was injured by falling and shattering glass when the quake struck. As he and others were planning to evacuate, at their managers' orders, tsunami waves struck and washed buildings from the nearby town past the plant.

"To me, it sounded like hell on earth," she said, adding that her husband ultimately escaped.

The government said earlier that it was sending senior officials and the defense force's Chemical Corps to Fukushima power plant, according to the Kyodo news agency.

From the Washington Post

Japan: 11 nuclear reactors shut down

By Steven Mufson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 11, 2011; 12:55 PM


Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) said Friday that a fire broke out at the Onagawa nuclear power plant but was later extinguished.

The plant is about 45 miles north of the city of Sengai, which was badly damaged by the deadly earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan Friday afternoon. Sendai is the population center nearest the epicenter of the quake, and Japan's Kyodo News agency said that more than 200 bodies had been found so far near the city.

The three reactors at the Onagawa site remained closed. Eleven of the country's nuclear reactors have been shut down.

The key buildings in the Onagawa plant are about 15 meters above sea level, according to the Web site of Tohoku Electric Power, owner of the plant. The company said that was about twice the height of the previous highest tsunami. The non-working backup generators at the plant were damaged by water from the tsunami, according to Glenn L. McCullough Jr., former head of the Tennessee Valley Authority who has been in touch with government experts in Japan.

Just hours after the quake, NISA also declared a heightened state of alert at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. NISA later told the energy agency that the plant has been shut down and that no release of radiation has been detected. People living within 1.2 miles of the plant were told to evacuate the area.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday morning that U.S. Air Force planes in Japan had delivered coolant to a nuclear power plant affected by the quake.

"They have very high engineering standards, but one of their plants came under a lot of stress with the earthquake and didn't have enough coolant," she said, "and so Air Force planes were able to deliver that." It was not immediately clear which plant received the coolant.

A group called Beyond Nuclear, devoted to highlighting the perils of nuclear power, said it received an e-mail from Philip White of the Citizens Nuclear Information Center in Tokyo saying that the Fukushima nuclear power plants lost power and that all the backup diesel generators were also "out of action." The group said that in order to provide power to cool the reactors, emergency generators were being trucked there by the plant's owner, Tokyo Electric Power Co.

"The multi-reactor Fukushima atomic power plant is now relying on battery power, which will only last around eight hours," said Kevin Kamps, a specialist in nuclear waste at Beyond Nuclear. "The danger is the very thermally hot reactor cores at the plant must be continuously cooled for 24 to 48 hours. Without any electricity, the pumps won't be able to pump water through the hot reactor cores to cool them."

Japanese authorities told the IAEA that that the Onagawa, Fukushima-Daini and Tokai nuclear power plants shut down automatically, and no radiation release has been detected. The plants have multiple nuclear reactors.

The IAEA said it is seeking details on Fukushima Daiichi and other nuclear power plants and research reactors, including information on off-site and on-site electrical power supplies, cooling systems and the condition of the reactor buildings. Nuclear fuel requires continued cooling even after a plant is shut down, the IAEA noted.

From Fox News

Earthquakes Put Japan's Nuclear Reactors on Red Alert

By Natalie Wolchover
Published March 11, 2011


The 8.9-magnitude earthquake that shook Japan early March 11 blew out the cooling systems of two nuclear reactors there. An inability to cool the reactors could cause radiation leaks, and both power plants are "bracing for the worst,” according to government officials.

"At present we have no reports of any radioactive materials or otherwise affecting the surrounding areas," Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan told the press. The malfunctions are occuring at the Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima Daiichi power plant near Tokyo and the Tohoku Electric Power Co. facility in Onagawa. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said that all the necessary precautions are being taken to prepare for radiation leaks, including evacuating thousands of residents within a 3-mile radius of the Fukushima facility.

Eleven reactors nearest the quake's epicenter automatically shut down upon sensing vibrations in the early hours of March 11. "Reactors shut themselves down automatically when something called 'ground acceleration' is registered at a certain point, which is usually quite small. It will instantly drop control rods into the [nuclear] core," Professor Tim Albram, a nuclear fuel engineer at the University of Manchester in the U.K., explained to the press.

Those control rods block neutrons from entering the core and inducing the fission reactions that produce nuclear energy. When the rods drop into the core, the heat put out by the nuclear fuel rods they surround plummets instantly, reducing the core's temperature to less than 5 percent of normal in a matter of seconds.

A base level of heat from nuclear decay continues to flow off the rods, however, and that's the problem in the Fukushima and Onagawa plants. Officials say they do not have enough electric power to pump water through the cooling systems and dissipate the extra heat. Water levels continue to drop.