A gamble

Tokyo Electric Power Co.(TEPCO) announced they would start transferring the nuclear fuel, used and unused, from the cooling pool on the 5th story of the 4th reactor building to the new pool on the ground.

The 4th reactor building has been destroyed by the hydrogen explosion at the accident and could be easily fallen down by further earthquake or another natural disaster. The pool contains over 1500 nucelar fuels, mostly used ones which could be highly radioactive and could harm people once they get out of the water. The other reactors also have a cooling pool, respectively, which still contains hundreds of nuclear fuels. Those pools are not easily accessible due to the high radioactivity. These are the reasons why they are starting the process of transfer at the 4the reactor.

A new crane was built at the 4th reactor building. It will take out each fuel into a cask weighing 100 tons. There could be debris or the other materials in the pool. Some fuels could be destroyed by them as well. It is not so easy for them to do this process due to those uncertain factors.

The pulled out fuels would be transferred from the 5th floor to the ground by the crane. The height is 30m. They insist that the doubled wires would safely hang down casks. But what safety coefficient have they taken for the crane against jolting due to such as a strong earthquake? Is it safe enough? They stated that they had done a drop test of the cask. But the height in the test is only 17m. Why not 30m? These informations mean they have hastened to transfer the fuels there.

The head at the nuclear power plant told they would escape from the nuclear plant as soon as a cask is destroyed falling down on the ground in this process. In such a situation, no wonder, they should inevitably run away there. But it means the nuclear plant is abandoned at that time. It is estimated more than ten times of the radioactive substances in Chernobyl would be spread into the surroundings. Then, they forecast, the contamination would make it impossible to reside in the Eastern Japan including Tokyo. It means the country won't exist as it has been at that time.

Yes, it is a unavoidable gamble. The government is eager to establish a NSC like organization in japan. But our security is jeopardized in this way from the inner aspect of the country, not from foreign countries. The government seems indifferent to the real crisis.