Japan Update: Water Radiation 10,000 Times Above Normal
As we continue to monitor developments in the radiation crisis in Japan, we share a recent announcement made by an official of the Japan nuclear and industrial safety agency on Friday.
According to a report on CNN, three men working at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant were exposed to water that had 10,000 times more radiation than normal. Hidehiko Nishiyama, the official, said that the contamination may be from the core of the No. 3 reactor. Nishiyama shared further that there may be a possibility of “some sort of leakage,” which may potentially include a crack in the containment vessel of the unit.
There are, as of Friday, 536 people working in the plant, including government authorities and firefighters. Workers are doing everything they can to prevent the further release of radioactive substances.
Tokyo Electric revealed that the three workers exposed to radiation on Thursday had the highest levels of radiation recorded so far. The workers had stepped in the water while laying cables in the basement of the building that housed the No. 3 reactor turbine. Two of the workers were wearing ankle-height boots, and water seeped into their footwear.
The workers stayed in water 5-inches deep for about 40 to 50 minutes.
Two of the workers were admitted to the National Institute of Radiological Sciences; one was exposed to 180.7 millisieverts, while the other tested at 179.37 millisieverts. The third worker was exposed to 173 millisieverts, and went to the research hospital only out of “an abundance of caution.”
