Japanese engineers raced to prevent a meltdown at a stricken nuclear plant on Tuesday, as rescuers scrambled to help millions left without food, water or heating by a devastating earthquake and tsunami. A second explosion rocked the Fukushima nuclear complex on Monday and rapidly failing water levels exposed fuel rods in another reactor, but the United Nations' nuclear watchdog said the crisis was unlikely to turn into another Chernobyl.
Rescue workers combed the tsunami-battered region north of Tokyo, where officials say at least 10,000 people were killed in the 8.9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami that followed it. "It's a scene from hell, absolutely nightmarish," said Patrick Fuller of the International Red Cross Federation from the north-eastern coastal town of Otsuchi. Prime Minister Naoto Kan has dubbed the multiple disasters Japan's worst crisis since World War Two and, with the financial costs estimated at up to $180 billion, analysts said it could tip the world's third biggest economy back into recession.
Japanese stocks closed down more than 7.5 percent, wiping $287 billion off market capitalisation in the biggest fall since the height of the global financial crisis in 2008. Insurers' shares fell for a second day in London and New York. The big fear at the Fukushima complex, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo, is of a major radiation leak. The complex has seen explosions at two of its reactors on Saturday and Monday, which sent a huge plume of smoke billowing above the plant.
The worst nuclear accident since the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine in 1986 has drawn criticism that authorities were ill-prepared and revived debate in many countries about the safety of atomic power. Switzerland put on hold some approvals for nuclear power plants and Germany said it was scrapping a plan to extend the life of its nuclear power stations. The White House said US President Barack Obama remained committed to nuclear energy.
"NOT CHERNOBYL" Yukiya Amano, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the reactor vessels of nuclear power plants affected by the disaster remained intact and, so far, the amount of radiation that had been released was limited. "The Japanese authorities are working as hard as they can, under extremely difficult circumstances, to stabilise the nuclear power plants and ensure safety," Amano said in a statement, adding at a news conference later that it was "unlikely that the accident would develop" like Chernobyl. An explosion at the Soviet Chernobyl plant sent radioactive fallout in swathe across northern Europe.
The plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), said fuel rods at the No 2 reactor were fully exposed. This could lead to the rods melting down. The rods, normally surrounded by cooling water, were partially exposed earlier after the engine-powered pump pouring in this water ran out of fuel.
Comments
Comments are closed.