The first photos of the so-called "Fukushima Fifty", the "anonymous band of lower and mid-level managers" (as described by the Daily Mail today
in their photo essay) who stayed at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi
plant last week, as the rest of the workers were evacuated when
radiation had reached record levels there, have now been published by
AP.
"Despite sweltering heat from the damaged reactors, they must work in
protective bodysuits to protect their skin from the poisonous
radioactive particles that fill the air around them," the Daily Mail
writes, in its heartbreaking piece, "But as more radiation seeps into
the atmosphere minute by minute, they know this job will be their last."
Workers were again evacuated from the Fukushima reactors 3 and 4 late
on Thursday (late Wednesday US time), after black smoke once again
began to emanate from Unit 3 where a dangerous mix of both uranium and
plutonium fuel the reactor, as well as sit in largely unprotected spent
fuel ponds in the same damaged building. The roof and walls were blown
off of Unit 3 last week after venting of radioactive steam in the
reactor led to a hydrogen explosion.
News reports today say that the black smoke, the cause of which is still unknown, has dissipated a bit at Unit 3, and this quick summary of the reactors' status at Fukushima
(March 23, 20:00 UTC) from the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) --- which has not always been as up to date as some of the actual
news sources on the ground --- suggests workers have now returned to
the plant.
"Crews continued today to use a concrete pump truck to deliver high
volumes of water into the Unit 4 spent fuel pool, where there are
concerns of inadequate water coverage over the fuel assemblies,"
according to the IAEA.
The biggest news last night was the announcement by the Tokyo
Metropolitan Government that radioactive iodine levels in the city's
municipal tap water has now increased to levels that are no longer safe
for infants. That, according to VOA News' Steve Herman latest report
(as well as other sources in Tokyo), has led to a "panic" and a run on
bottled water at stores, many of which have now run out entirely.
As Herman reports:
Beyond that, despite those setbacks at this hour, the status at the
Fukushima Daiichi plant seems to be largely in the same place as it was
during our previous update yesterday,
as lights are slowly coming back on at the various units now that power
has been restored to all of them from the grid. But pumping and cooling
equipment continues to be malfunctioning in all but the 5 and 6 units
at the plant, so work continues to pump water in hopes of keeping down
temperatures and radiation at Units 1 to 4.
Brad Blog