tepco live conference on fire now

some from outside

it is getting severe conditions to send people there to check right now

even if you see the smoke we don't know which building so i'd like you to understand

it is not the reactor but the facility in between 1st reactor & 5th reactor where yellow circles are. (on map given)

so it looks like around the third reactor/4th reactor?

yes.

i don't know what's happening there & i really like you to understand -- i don't want to talk about what could happen --

now going to tbs japan

A: we don't know if third or 4th reactor, we are still trying to find out where

A: we just heard that it looks like third but we can't confirm

Q: do you think it's the fuel pool

A: if smoke is white it could be the water vapor so that's a possibility

A: it's possible that if the fuel pool is start getting burned it's possible radiation could start coming out from the pool

A: latest radiation level today 9:00 am japan time = 587 micro Sv at front gate

A: right now many detection sensors are broken - reactor 3 broken

A: the last time we checked reactor 4 temp reactor water temp was 84 celsius

Q: this looks like the data from 2 days ago, isn't it the same data? my question is, when was the data taken?

A: yes, this (temp reading) is from two days ago. this is all we have. of course we are in condition we cannot cool down pool of used fuel rods.

we don't know how much heat was left on those fuel rods -- if they are warming we have possible they were/are exposed but just possibility

the fuel rods stored in pool we exchanged the fuel 9 months ago so the ones that are already stored are 9 months old.

514 spent rods 9 months under cooling.

so it depends how much heat has been removed but if they increase temperature more than 1200....

(interruptions)

and kind of pump that could bring it there to feed water

it's the third reactor, we took the picture from the nw

you took from the tower?

yeah. we are just saying we can provide a picture & sorry i still need you to wait in terms of the fire truck

it's the third reactor in center, 4th reactor on left, we took it from the north side -- northwest corner of 3rd reactor in the picture

the fire is where i'm pointing at -- for now, let me distribute picture

so it looks like you have a hole in there, right? would you leave it so we can take a picture --

we are distributing the picture in tokyo too

we will make a copy & give it to you

i don't verify the accuracy of my hearing/typing as trying to keep up

i missed some stuff & didn't hear some things that well -- some difficult to interpret also

nhk english may have the same thing with better translation

Reporters clearly double-checking info given and pressing for accuracy.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/mar/15/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-japan

Not sure if that's time in Japan or GMT but I think it's GMT (British time). Tues 3/15.

If fact, not sure about this at all. Cuz that fire started, then was put out, then was started again.

for (Unintentionally?) funny post heading...

That implies that there's water in there and it isn't boiling. Can't imagine a fuel fire in those circumstances.

Obviously it's a little tough to follow.

the two day old reading was the temperature (84 celsius) of the spent fuel pool.

i believe.

Looks like I -- and a few others watching the feed -- picked it up wrong.

readings too.

10 am very high reading in millisieverts, i think around reactor 3, coming down as of 10:54 am, couldn't catch the details

measuring instruments are damaged and the info was not up to date.

This is Japan after all.

That's what? Around 180 degrees F? Note, Monday was before the problems there began and it experienced it's first explosion and fire.

They are lying and giving readings from 2 days ago.

And this translator is not very helpful.

After it's over he rewinds and retranslates at least that's what he did before.

They said the equipment has failed.

I wish I could find that article, but it was on NHK, I'm sure of that.

without much sleep all during the crisis, reporting the japanese media as it comes out, in japanese, before it appears in the us media, so that english speakers in japan can have immediate information.

in addition, he doesn't spin it, he just reports what is said to the best of his ability.

plus he answers people's questions & helps direct them to where they can get info on missing people, etc.

he's been on air, with his own equipment, 14-18 hours a day since the crisis started.

he is *very* helpful & you arent.

and he has clarified a lot of stuff the us media got wrong.

n/t

That means they've been cooled very well.

Honestly, I think that's how long.

Some facilities just keep it their longer because there's room in the pool.

Of course it also depends on the type of fuel.

:)

Sid

just like what happened with #2, there's a probability vapor is coming out from the broken part of the containment vessel we have no detailed info & are investigating - that's the assumption but not certain

did you hear a blast?

no there's no report of that.

currently you are recording high level of radiation but there is any change in evacuation plan?

no need until it (goes further)

temperature seems to be rising in 5&6, so you see any possibility same thing will happen there

we started cooling them, compared to the temperatures yesterday the temperaturs are rising but we are cooling

regarding #4 are you considering helicopters to spray water/boric?

we have joint task force we are going to report if we do that -- we got advice to do that but depending on situation in storage pool there is some risk so we have to analyze -- basically pouring slower is safer

we will tell you when decision of what to do is final

are you getting better info with joint task force

yes, we also get more speedy info about changes in readings, cooperation is better but is difficult for us to see

number 4: it's hard to understand what tepco is saying but they said there's possibility of reaching criticality again, what is your understanding?

well, everything is possible, but assessment as of right now, i don't think we need to be prepared for reaching of criticality so we are making sure this will not become a real risk

water level of 1-3 reactors will be reported by tepco

this increase of radiation reading in number 3 reactor is it possible the containment vessel has failed?

we needed to release the air so that may be the source

no 4, you said you're trying to cool, but you haven't been able to inject water yet, right

basically right, impacted by reactor 3 because of such high radiation reading
it's not so simple as just to pour in water, we have to make sure we don't create additional risk

what about protective gear

us and other countries have offered, probably we might need help of us military, we've been offered pump cars

are you going to cooperate with us forces on other operations

what is going to be done specifically we be clear as result of negotiation

...

we are supply water from ground but supplying from above involves pumping large amount of water/safety of helicopter operation

the stable supply of power will make it easier to carry on operations

you said observation in terms of millisieverts?

10 am level raised to millisieverts level and yesterday was micro so not good

but as of 10:54 coming down rapidly

yesterday some businesses in tokyo advised residents to stay inside so that is causing concern, will you offer advice to people outside the danger area?

Thank you.

And then right on to food shortages.

so especially the gasoline we'd like the japanese people not to buy out\

i'm talking to private oil company & taking to areas with shortage

otoh, the area with not much damage is having shortages

i heard you stay at the cabinet -- why did you go home last night

i know the victims are left outside or at shelters so in order to make a right judgement i was told to maintain my health in order to make a right judgement i didn't sleep at the office but went home.

so to maintain our health, including the pm -- it is our responsibility so we can make the right judgements, so i am trying my best not to delay my judgement

at this point thermal plant we are trying our best to restore the thermal plant

regarding nuclear power plant, because of whats happened we have to take a great measure so we will - we don't believe there will be restoration of the nuclear power -- there will be a limitation of power, so we have to get ready for society with less power consumption.

so please ask the meti how much power we could get back.


****


i guess that was edano as he's the one everyone has been worried about as he has not appeared to have gotten enough sleep all during the crisis....

there have been facebook pages, etc. "Edano, go to bed!"

v. PM Kan: "Kan, wake up!!"

He just had to count the number of days since the incident began and he had to start over three times.

He's building a base for future viewers though so there's that.

15 March 2011 Last updated at 21:57 ET

The blaze struck reactor four of the Fukushima Daiichi plant for the second time in two days. Officials then said it appeared to be out, but smoke was later seen rising from the plant.

(SNIP)

The site has also been hit by four explosions, triggering radiation leaks and sparking health concerns.

(SNIP)

The new fire at reactor four was reported early on Wednesday. Three hours later, Japan's nuclear safety agency said flames could no longer be seen.

But live footage on Japanese TV later showed smoke rising from the plant. It was not immediately clear which part of the facility was on fire.

(MORE)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12754883

--------------------------------------

So, according to our current press conference/ translation, it's Reactor #3 (confirmed by a photo) that is currently on fire. This is the one with the worst blown off roof (2nd roof blow off) and with plutonium in the fuel. Reactor #4, right next to it, had the earlier fires mentioned in this BBC article. They put out the #4 fires but the reporter says they can still see smoke. This smoke could have been #4 still burning or the #3 fire just starting. (The two plants are very close together.) Also, according to the current news, #3's censors are not working. So it's anybody's guess how much nuclear material is spewing into the air from #3 right now (except that these may be older "spent fuel" rods, not so "hot" as some, according to the statements above).

If two of these "spent fuel" rods fires get going at the same time, next to each other, that could be extremely bad, because they could join and then incinerate the whole facility (worst case scenario). But short of that, we're surely getting nuclear material spurted into the atmosphere by these on-and-off fires. The "spent fuel" rods have no containment.

It's hard to imagine what a fire truck could do that the on-site sea water pumping cannot do. I wonder why the fire trucks. They said something about needing a certain type of pump. Buy why now--at this point? Because #3 is too "hot," they can't get close to it and need a pump that shoots a higher, stronger stream? Just a guess. And I wonder about the 50 workers (48 now, I guess--report that 2 of them died in the #4 explosions). And I wonder about more and more fires breaking out, with no containment over the "spent fuel" rods. Ah, me! This is so terrible.

---------

THANK YOU TO HANNAH BELL AND TO THE JAPANESE TRANSLATOR! You are both heroes bringing this to us live!

but steam (as in steam release/boiling water). maybe that's my misinterpretation, but i think we should wait for further clarification.

things are moving very quickly, & people tend to jump on every bit of info & run with it.