Getting Better & Not Getting Better

March 25, 2011

Fukushima Plant
This Japan Times article talks about the nuclear plant from the point of view of a plant designer who worked there when they were being build and  always thought those plants were unsafe. He is very worried about the plant and the future of nuclear safety in Japan. 

Disaster analysis you may not hear elsewhere

Bottled water
Kashiwa and Abiko (near me) have water contamination warnings and I have heard from neighbors that bottled water can not had at any price. But it looks like water contamination rates are getting better day by day.



My husband wants to buy lots of bottled water here to use when we get back home.

Hospital Generators
During the blackouts, hospitals turn on their electric generators. One hospital said that the generator filled about 50% of their needs. The problem is that they are having a hard time buying kerosene to run the generator. I don't understand why there isn't some sort of order making hospital buying first on the list.  The staff should not have to drive from gas station to gas station to find kerosene.....

Land Under Water
It looks like some 500 square kilometers were flooded by the tsunami and 70% of that land is still underwater. One reason the water will not recede is that during or after the earthquake, a lot of land subsided so that it is lower than it was before.

During and After the Tsunami in Chiba Area
There are many stories coming out about what happened in the Chiba area, along the sea coast after the earthquake.

One man and his father lived after the 1st wave hit them and they thought it was over. The son went to buy clean-up tools while the father stayed behind at their gas station to clean up. They never saw the father again after the 2nd and 3rd waves hit, those last two waves being the biggest.

A woman, in her 80's waited two hours after the 2nd wave and she thought the tsunami was over, so she went home. 13 minutes later the biggest, 3rd wave hit. They found her, dead, 100m from her home.

Another man and his elderly father were fleeing the tsunami when they were hit by the 1st wave. They were holding hands, but the father let go. The next day, the son found his father's hat and at home, the only thing left was a photo of their dad.

Another Loudspeaker Story
A young fireman kept broadcasting that the tsunami was going to hit. Luckily for him, the tsunami only went up a few meters at his fire station. But, along the port areas of the city a woman heard his broadcast and jumped in her car and fled. She lived. Another woman, 91, living near by alone, was paralyzed by fear and could not move, but a friend who always looked out for her, drove to her home and picked her up. She lived too. And she is back home, amazing because it still seems to be standing.

Quite Days
The weather is clear without a cloud in the sky. And it is sort of warm outside. But it is snowing up north. Spring is not here for everybody.