[11th March 2011] 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan
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AVA monitoring food imports from Japan closely
http://news.xin.msn.com/en/singapore/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4709426
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Originally posted by Doraemonboi:
Wonder what will happen to singapore when the world end
Most likely killed by earthquake or tsunami.
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Higher than normal radiation in Tokyo: City govt
TOKYO - A HIGHER than normal level of radiation was detected in Japan's capital Tokyo on Tuesday, but a city government official said it was not considered at the level where it harms human health.
Radiation spewed on Tuesday from a crippled nuclear power plant in tsunami-ravaged north-eastern Japan in a dramatic escalation of the 4-day-old catastrophe that prompted the government to tell people within 30km to stay indoors to avoid exposure.
In a nationally televised statement, Prime Minister Naoto Kan said radiation has spread from the three reactors of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in one of the hardest-hit provinces in Friday's 9.0-magnitude earthquake and the ensuing tsunami.
'The level seems very high, and there is still a very high risk of more radiation coming out,' Mr Kan said. He warned there are dangers of more leaks and told people living within 30km of the Dai-ichi complex to stay indoors to avoid potential health risks from the radiation.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said a fourth reactor at the complex was on fire and more radiation had been released. 'Now we are talking about levels that can damage human health. These are readings taken near the area where we believe the releases are happening. Far away, the levels should be lower,' Mr Edano said.
The death toll from last week's earthquake and tsunami jumped Tuesday as police confirmed the number killed had topped 2,400, though that grim news was overshadowed by a deepening nuclear crisis. Officials have said previously that at least 10,000 people may have died in Miyagi province alone.
-- AP, AFP
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Radiation level falls in Tokyo: city government
TOKYO - THE level of radiation in Tokyo fell on Tuesday afternoon after rising above normal levels in the morning due to radiation emmitted from a quake-hit nuclear power plant, metropolitan officials said.
Tokyo officials said they detected 0.809 of a micro-sievert between 10.00 am (9am Singapore time) and 11.00am in the capital, some 250km southwest of the troubled Fukushima plant on the Pacific coast.
The normal level is about 0.035-0.036 micro-sieverts. A chest X-ray typically involves a dose of 20 micro-sieverts.
'We monitored a higher than normal amount of radiation in the morning in Tokyo. But we don't consider it to be at a level where the human body is affected,' said Sairi Koga, an official of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The level fell to an average 0.075 micro-sieverts four hours later, he said.
'It is returning closer to the normal level. But we need to keep a close watch on it,' health and welfare official Keiichi Nakaya said.
The central government warned on Tuesday that radiation levels near the quake-stricken nuclear plant were now harmful to human health, following two explosions and a fire earlier in the day.
-- AFP
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Hopefully it will be under control.
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Strong quake shakes Tokyo region
TOKYO - A strong quake was felt late Tuesday in Tokyo, shaking buildings in Japan's capital four days after a massive tremor sparked a devastating tsunami that ravaged the country's northeast coast.
The Japan Meteorological Agency put the magnitude of the quake at 6.0.
The epicentre was located in Shizuoka prefecture, about 120 kilometres southwest of the capital, and near Mount Fuji, which is prone to earthquakes.
The quake occurred at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres.
The US Geological Survey put the magnitude at 6.1 and said it had been preceded a few minutes earlier by another 5.8-magnitude tremor. The epicentre of that aftershock was located 315 kilometres northeast of Tokyo.
- AFP/ir -
More pple living and working in Tyo will be taking long leave and get out of Tyo fearing the radiation leak. More chaos and uncertainty for the pple ahead.
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A terrible year for Japan indeed.
RIP to those who died, and condolences to those whose loved ones passed on. -
After Japan, who's next? Bad bad year....
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Seems like this morning got fire @ No.4 Reactor, but now under control le...
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Originally posted by ^Acid^ aka s|aO^eH~:
Seems like this morning got fire @ No.4 Reactor, but now under control le...
They have 6 reactors right? Now left 2 running? Seem like all gonna crash very soon. Meltdown.... -
Workers allowed back into quake-damaged Japan nuclear plant
TOKYO (Reuters) - Workers ordered to leave a quake-damaged nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan were allowed back in after radiation levels fell, the Japan nuclear agency said.
Pumping of seawater at reactors at No. 1, 2 and 3 was proceeding smoothly, it said.
-- Reuters
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Originally posted by ^Acid^ aka s|aO^eH~:
Seems like this morning got fire @ No.4 Reactor, but now under control le...
Smoke billows from Japan plant
TOKYO: A cloud of white smoke was seen rising Wednesday above a quake-stricken Japanese nuclear power plant, live TV footage showed, following a subdued fire that broke out earlier.
The cause of the smoke, at the Fukushima No. 1 plant 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of Tokyo, was not immediately known.
A fire broke out early Wednesday at the number-four reactor there but was said to have been extinguished later.
Engineers have been grappling with a nuclear emergency since last Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami cut power to the plant and caused reactor fuel rods to heat up dangerously.
There have now been four explosions and two fires at the complex.
Media reports said the smoke appears to be coming from reactor number three, which was hit by a blast Monday that tore off the outer structure of the reactor building.
Plant operator Tokyo Electricity Power Co said it did not know where the smoke is coming from.
-AFP/wk -
meltdown = we jialat liao
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Japan rescuers pull 70-yr-old woman from debris
Rescuers pulled a 70-year-old woman from her toppled home Tuesday, five days after an earthquake-spurred tsunami tossed the house off its foundation in Japan's northeast.
The rescues of the elderly Sai Abe and a younger man pulled from rubble elsewhere in the region were rare good news following Friday's disaster that killed at least 2,700 people and left thousands missing.
Abe's son said he had tried to save his mother but could not get her to flee her home in the port town of Otsuchi. His relief at her rescue, he said, was tempered by the fact that his father is still missing.
"I couldn't lift her up, and she couldn't escape because her legs are bad," Hiromi Abe said on national television. "My feelings are complicated, because I haven't found my father."
The elderly woman was suffering from hypothermia and was sent to a hospital, but appeared to have no life-threatening injuries, said Yuko Kotani, a spokesman for Osaka fire department.
Another survivor, described as being in his 20s, was shown on television being pulled from a building further down the coast in the city of Ishimaki after rescue workers heard him calling for help.
Conditions for those still alive in the rubble worsened as a cold front arrived Tuesday, further pushing down temperatures. Snow is forecast over the next few days.
-- AP
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With so many things happening, Singapore should really prepare ourselves for natural disasters like this, its the least we can do to protect ourselves. The Japanese are really lucky to have been trained in handling this kind of situations, if it were Singapore, we could all have been in a state of panic and not know what to do, which is potentially fatal for the entire population. Plus, us being kiasu is another negative factor, japan is able to handle the earthquake well because they are people with big hearts, and even the yakuza came out to help, but if it was Singapore...man i can already imagine all the aunties and uncles pushing around to get to higher ground and getting the last of the food reserves, pushing away all the other people(which would unfortunately include the young and the elderly) so we should also change this mindset of ours if we want to survive, because survival is not about ourselves, its about everybody.
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Japan's nuclear crisis deepens, emperor addresses nation
SENDAI : Japan's emperor gave a rare address to a jittery nation on Wednesday as a nuclear emergency deepened and millions struggled in desperate conditions after last week's quake and tsunami disaster.
The television appearance by Emperor Akihito emphasised the severity of the crisis gripping Japan after the 9.0-magnitude quake and the waves it unleashed, killing thousands and crippling a nuclear power plant.
Akihito said he was "deeply concerned" about the "unpredictable" situation at the stricken Fukushima No.1 power plant, which has been hit by a series of explosions after the quake knocked out reactor cooling systems.
"I sincerely hope that we can keep the situation from getting worse," Akihito said, in an historic televised address that marked the first time he has intervened in a national crisis.
He added: "I have received messages of condolence from heads of state of various countries with kind words that their hearts are with the victims. Allow me to convey the words to people in the afflicted areas."
Japanese crews grappling with the world's worst nuclear incident since Chernobyl briefly suspended work after a spike in radiation levels at the plant 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of Tokyo.
And already jangled nerves were frayed further by a strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake that swayed buildings in Tokyo.
The official toll of the dead and missing after the quake and tsunami flattened Japan's northeast coast on Friday rose to more than 11,000, with 3,676 confirmed killed, police said.
After the Tokyo stock exchange's biggest two-day sell-off in 24 years sparked a global market rout, the headline Nikkei share index closed up 5.68 per cent on bargain hunting.
The Bank of Japan pumped another 3.5 trillion yen (US$43.3 billion) into the financial system, adding to trillions spent this week since the disaster crippled a large swathe of the economy.
The evacuation order at the Fukushima nuclear power plant came as a tall white cloud was seen billowing into the sky over the stricken complex.
Earlier, crews at Fukushima contended with a new fire and feared damage to the vessel containing one of the plant's six reactor cores.
The 50 or so workers at the plant have been hailed as heroes.
"Please don't forget that there are people who are working to protect everyone's lives in exchange for their own lives," said one post on Japanese social networking site Mixi.
Japanese military helicopters were due to dump water on the nuclear plant, which has been hit by four explosions and two fires, to help contain the overheating, but were forced back due to radiation, reports said.
Engineers have been desperately battling a feared meltdown at the 40-year-old plant since the earthquake and tsunami knocked out cooling systems and fuel rods began overheating.
But chief government spokesman Yukio Edano said radiation levels from the plant posed no immediate health threat outside a 20-kilometres exclusion zone that has already been evacuated.
France's Nuclear Safety Authority said the disaster now equated to a six on the seven-point international scale for nuclear accidents, ranking the crisis second only in gravity to the level-seven Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
But Yukiya Amano, the Japanese chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency, insisted on Tuesday there was no comparison to the Chernobyl crisis, when radiation spewed across Europe.
Aside from the nuclear threat, the full scale of the quake and tsunami disaster was becoming clear as more details emerged of the staggering death and devastation in the worst-hit northeast.
"The number of people killed is increasing day by day and we do not know how many people have fallen victim," said the emperor, who is held in deep respect by many Japanese.
"I pray for the safety of as many people as possible. People are being forced to evacuate in such severe conditions of bitter cold, with shortages of water and fuel... I cannot help praying that rescue work is done swiftly and people's lives get better, even a little."
He also thanked emergency personnel - both from Japan and abroad - for their efforts to locate the many missing and help survivors battling difficult conditions including increasingly cold temperatures in the affected zone.
Millions of Japanese have been left without water, electricity, fuel or enough food and hundreds of thousands more are homeless, stoically coping with freezing cold and wet conditions in the northeast.
Aomori governor Shingo Mimura said he desperately needed central government assistance to get hold of oil and relief supplies.
"We cannot possibly get out to rescue survivors nor reconstruct the devastated areas without oil," he said.
"There are a variety of problems, such as shortages of water, food and blankets as well as difficulties in delivering supplies," added Ryu Matsumoto, state minister in charge of disaster management.
Tokyo Electric Power Co said three-hour power outages on Wednesday would affect 10.89 million households.
The governor of Fukushima prefecture, home to the crippled nuclear plant, said people were at breaking point.
"The worry and anger of the people of Fukushima has been pushed to the limit," Yuhei Sato told public broadcaster NHK.
With nerves on edge across the world's third-biggest economy and beyond, people across Asia have been stripping shelves of essentials for fear of a major emission of radiation from the power plant on the east coast.
The Japanese government has warned that panic buying in towns and cities that have not been directly affected by the twin disasters could hurt its
ability to provide aid to the devastated areas.
The normally heaving streets and subways of Tokyo were quieter than usual on Wednesday morning. The number of people sporting paper face masks has shot up, although the masks offer no real protection against radiation.
Radiation levels in the capital's vast urban sprawl of 30 million people have see-sawed without ever reaching harmful levels, according to the government.
But it has warned people living up to 10 kilometres (six miles) beyond a 20-kilometre exclusion zone around the Fukushima plant to stay indoors. More than 200,000 people have already been evacuated from the zone.
Beyond Japan, Asian nations vowed to crack down on hoax messages warning about radiation spreading beyond Japan, which have helped stoke growing unease over the unfolding crisis.
- AFP/ms -
nuclear disarmament is the way to go
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the last best hope for Earth....
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Japan choppers dump water on stricken nuke plant
TOKYO: Japanese military helicopters dumped water Thursday onto the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant northeast of Tokyo in a bid to douse fuel rods and prevent a disastrous radiation release.
Four twin-rotor CH-47 Chinooks of the Self-Defence Forces ran the first mission to empty large buckets that hold more than seven tonnes of water each onto the facility damaged by Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami.
The operation aims to keep the fuel rods inside reactors and containment pools submerged under water, to stop them from degrading when they are exposed to air and emitting dangerous radioactive material.
The helicopter mission started in the morning under a clear sky after a similar effort the previous day was called off by officials citing strong radiation and high winds, shortly before darkness fell.
Police water cannon were also set to support the effort Thursday, along with firefighting equipment already in use over recent days at the plant, located some 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of the Japanese capital.
The plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPC0), said earlier it was concentrating on restoring the power supply to reactivate its crippled cooling systems, which were knocked out in the dual calamity.
"We cannot tell when, but we want to restore the power source as soon as possible," TEPCO spokesman Naohiro Omura told AFP.
TEPCO was preparing to restore outside power lines from Tohoku Electric Power Co., which serves the region, and connect its damaged electric transmission system with unaffected lines.
"At the moment, we are concentrating our efforts on this work," he said.
"If the restoration work is completed, we will be able to activate various electric pumps and pour water into reactors and pools for spent nuclear fuel."
The 9.0-magnitude quake, the biggest on record to strike Japan, knocked down electricity pylons which Tohoku had used to supply power to the TEPCO plant.
Some 70 workers have been using fire pumps to pour seawater to cool reactors at the plant, according to media reports. They are using electricity from power supply cars which the company has borrowed from different places.
-AFP/ac -
13,000 dead, missing in Japan disaster: Police
TOKYO - THE official number of dead and missing after a devastating earthquake and tsunami that flattened Japan's north-east coast has passed 13,000, police said on Thursday, but reports hinted at a much higher toll.
The number of confirmed dead from Friday's twin disasters stood at 5,178, while the official number of missing remained at 8,606, the national police agency said in its latest update.
A total of 2,285 people were injured in the disaster. But reports continued to come in which indicated that the final toll could be much higher.
The mayor of the coastal town of Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture said late on Wednesday that the number of missing there was likely to hit 10,000, Kyodo News reported.
On Saturday, public broadcaster NHK reported that around 10,000 people were unaccounted for in the port town of Minamisanriku in the same prefecture.
Amid a mass rescue effort there were grim updates indicating severe loss of life along the battered east coast of Honshu island, where the monster waves destroyed or damaged more than 55,380 homes and other buildings.
-- AFP
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Indonesia pledges $2.56m aid for Japan: Reports
JAKARTA - INDONESIA has pledged US$2 million (S$2.56 million) in emergency aid to earthquake and tsunami-wrecked Japan, reports said on Thursday.
'Indonesia is giving US$2 million in aid to Japan to help the emergency situation as a result of the earthquake and tsunami,' Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told reporters late on Wednesday.
'It's still possible to provide more aid later,' he was quoted as saying by Antara state-owned news agency.
Indonesia will be sending a team of search and rescue experts, medical personnel and soldiers to help in the relief and rehabilitation efforts, Natalegawa was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Globe newspaper.
'Whenever Indonesia is faced with disaster, Japan... has given us much aid, such as funds to help rebuild infrastructure,' he added. 'This is the right time for us to repay them.'
According to the World Bank's website, in 2009 Japan's GDP per capita was almost eight times higher than Indonesia's.
Like Japan, Indonesia sits on the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', where the meeting of continental plates causes high seismic activity. A powerful 9.1-magnitude undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra island in 2004 triggered a tsunami which killed 220,000 in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia.
-- AFP
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Originally posted by QX179R:
Indonesia pledges $2.56m aid for Japan: Reports
JAKARTA - INDONESIA has pledged US$2 million (S$2.56 million) in emergency aid to earthquake and tsunami-wrecked Japan, reports said on Thursday.
'Indonesia is giving US$2 million in aid to Japan to help the emergency situation as a result of the earthquake and tsunami,' Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told reporters late on Wednesday.
'It's still possible to provide more aid later,' he was quoted as saying by Antara state-owned news agency.
Indonesia will be sending a team of search and rescue experts, medical personnel and soldiers to help in the relief and rehabilitation efforts, Natalegawa was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Globe newspaper.
'Whenever Indonesia is faced with disaster, Japan... has given us much aid, such as funds to help rebuild infrastructure,' he added. 'This is the right time for us to repay them.'
According to the World Bank's website, in 2009 Japan's GDP per capita was almost eight times higher than Indonesia's.
Like Japan, Indonesia sits on the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', where the meeting of continental plates causes high seismic activity. A powerful 9.1-magnitude undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra island in 2004 triggered a tsunami which killed 220,000 in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia.
-- AFP
256? sounds like RAM
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Japan disaster dead, missing at 14,650
TOKYO - THE official number of dead and missing after a devastating earthquake and tsunami that flattened Japan's north-east coast has hit 14,650, police said on Thursday, a rise of nearly 1,000 in just a few hours.
The number of confirmed dead from Friday's twin disasters rose to 5,321, while the official number of missing increased to 9,329, the national police agency said in its latest update.
A total of 2,383 people were injured in the disaster. But reports have indicated that the final toll could be much higher.
The mayor of the coastal town of Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture said late Wednesday that the number of missing there was likely to hit 10,000, Kyodo News reported.
On Saturday, public broadcaster NHK reported that around 10,000 people were unaccounted for in the port town of Minamisanriku in the same prefecture.
Amid a mass rescue effort there were grim updates indicating severe loss of life along the battered east coast of Honshu island, where the monster waves destroyed or damaged more than 55,380 homes and other buildings.
-- AFP
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Death tolls raising...many stil disappeared, probably buried under the mud and being wash out to sea...forever gone....sad!