Magnitude 7.3 earthquake in Japan just now

[Art_from_Ark]

There was just a Magnitude 7.3 earthquake here in Japan-- centered off the coast of the Sanriku area of northeastern Japan. Here in Tokyo, the building I'm in was swaying for a minute or longer. Tsunami warnings and advisories have been issued for nearly the entire eastern Pacific coast of Honshu Island. Fortunately, it seems that the strongest intensity on land was a 5- on the Japanese scale, meaning that some things may have been knocked off shelves and a few windows may have been broken.

[Warren DeMontague]

1. Shit. Stay safe.

Hope everyone's okay.

[Art_from_Ark]

3. The most serious warning has been issued

for some towns that were the most devastated by last year's tsunami. The TV is saying that people in those areas should evacuate. Damn!

[Le Taz Hot]

2. And a Tsunami warning?

Good goddess, poor Japan! Be safe.

[Bonobo]

4. Fuck. Please please please...

Please be ok.

[Art_from_Ark]

5. It was measured as a Shindo 4 in my building

We had to put on our hard hats for a while. It was not a pleasant experience, but at least everything here seems to be normal now. The building has just announced that the Tokyo trains are running on a normal schedule.

[Bonobo]

6. Should be ok.

Only 1m tsunami warning.

[Art_from_Ark]

7. It should be OK, but

Last edited Fri Dec 7, 2012, 05:40 AM - Edit history (1)

the TV is flashing a big "Tsunami! Evacuate! " banner and is still warning residents of coastal Miyagi to evacuate.

[Art_from_Ark]

8. The tsunami at Kessennuma was only 80 centimeters

After what happened there last year, though, the authorities weren't taking any chances.

[malaise]

9. Stay safe

[Art_from_Ark]

10. Thanks

I think the danger has passed for now, but with Japan, you never know.

[kelliekat44]

11. Please be safe, friends!!

[Cooley Hurd]

12. How stable have they gotten the spent fuel pool in #4 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi?

Last I remember, the biggest fear was the collapse of the spent fuel cooling structure.

[Art_from_Ark]

13. There was an article about that 3 days ago in the Yomiuri Shimbun

I don't have time to translate the entire article right now, but the first paragraph goes like this:

政府と東京電力は３日、福島第一原子力発電所４号機の廃炉に向けた使用済み核燃料プールからの燃料取り出しを、当初の計画より約１年早い２０１４年末までに終える方針を決定した

On December 3 (2012), the Japanese government and TEPCO decided on guidelines for removing nuclear fuel from the spent fuel pool of the Number 4 unit of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant by the end of 2014, one year ahead of the original schedule, to help in the decommissioning of the Number 4 reactor.

The full article (in Japanese) is here:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/science/news/20121203-OYT1T01158.htm?from=ylist

[Junkdrawer]

14. Last word was that they could withstand an upper 6 quake....

TEPCO is building a superstructure to handle the load of heavy cranes so that large standard unloading casks can be used.

Arnie Gundersen has been begging them to use a smaller unloading cask so that the unloading could occur sooner.

Arnie does a podcast each Sunday evening here:

http://www.fairewinds.org/content/fairewinds-podcast

I'm sure he'll cover it this week.

On edit:

Arnie covered it in October here:

http://www.fairewinds.org/content/podcast-october-21st-2012

[Art_from_Ark]

15. The Japanese article I referred to

stated that multiple unloading casks can be prepared to move the spent fuel:

取り出した燃料を約５０メートル離れた「共用プール」に移送する際に使う金属容器を、複数用意できることになったためという。

It also said that work on installing a roof cover has been progressing since August, and that the removal work will commence in November 2013, about a month earlier than originally planned.

また４号機では、燃料を取り出す足場に使われる建屋カバーの設置が今年８月から順調に進められており、取り出し開始時期も当初予定の１３年１２月から約１か月前倒しして行う予定だ。

[Junkdrawer]

16. In September, TEPCO tried to cover a crack in Unit 4 with a cheap photoshop:

http://www.psdisasters.com/2012/09/tempco-fukushima-unit-4-cover-up.html

Early words of assurance should be taken with a grain of salt.