Was the nuclear reactor at Fukushima struck?
In Fukushima Prefecture, where a huge earthquake and tsunami caused the Daiichi nuclear power plant to melt down in 2011, a burst levee flooded the banks of the Abukuma River after heavy rains.
Separately, Tokyo Electric Power said it was inspecting the nuclear plant for damage from the heavy rains.
In the city of Tamura, floodwaters displaced huge bags containing contaminated waste gathered during the cleanup of areas around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, Kyodo News reported. A river washed away an unknown number of the bags, which were in a temporary storage area, it said.
The contents of the bags, which hold up to 1.3 tons, were unclear, but they are most likely filled with irradiated topsoil and other refuse from the cleanup that followed the meltdown. Ten of the bags were recovered undamaged, Kyodo News said, and the authorities are cataloging the remaining ones to see how many were still missing.”
While a first read of this story may seem to repeat the previously quoted story of bags being washed away, what we at Fairewinds find additionally disturbing is that a levee (dam) has also burst. It is well known that enormous amounts of radioactive material from the Fukushima meltdowns have settled on the bottom of stream beds and behind levees throughout Japan. As this and other levees and dams burst, they will release even more of that radiation into swollen streams and rivers where it will settle anew in crop lands and populated areas that were previously thought to be cleaned.
Our concern is magnified because people and animals cannot see, taste, or smell this migrating radioactivity. If we look at the radioactively contaminated dirt, trees, and vegetation dispersed by this super typhoon, it will not look any different from any other river mud or debris, so people and animals will not know that it is contaminated with the most toxic substances known to humans. As our tagline says “Radiation Knows No Borders,” and unlike an oil spills, plastics, and some chemical leaks, there is no color or smell for anyone to know they should watch out!