Thousands roam Tokyo streets, stations

Quake shuts down sprawling train system

Updated: Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 8:06 AM EST
Published : Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 7:36 AM EST

* JAY ALABASTER,Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) - Tens of thousands of stranded people roamed the streets of Tokyo or holed up in offices and train stations as the capital's usual bustling traffic came to a standstill Friday after the biggest earthquake in modern Japanese history struck.

The magnitude-8.9 temblor off Japan's northeastern coast shook buildings in the capital, left millions of homes across Japan without electricity, shut down the mobile phone network and severely disrupted landline telephone service. It brought train system to a halt, paralyzing the daily commuter flow of more than 10 million people.

Akira Tanaka, 54, a restaurant worker, was among those who just gave up and decided to walk home — to suburban Saitama, 12 miles (20 kilometers) north of Tokyo, an endeavor he has never tackled before.

"I've been walking an hour and 10 minutes, still have about three hours to go," he said. "This is the kind of earthquake that hits once every 100 years."

Phone lines were crammed, preventing some calls and messaging from getting through. Calls to northeastern Japan, where a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami washed ashore after the quake, often failed to go through, with a recording saying the area's lines were busy.

Unable to rely on their mobile phones, lines of people formed at the normally vacant public phone booths dotting the city.

Japan's top telecommunications company Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. set up an emergency phone line and a special Internet site for people to leave messages for families and friends to inform them of their safety.

Tokyo commuter trains and subways, as well as the superfast bullet-trains, all shut down, according to East Japan Railway Co. A handful of subway lines resumed service were back up, but only after six hours.

Earlier in the day, people continued to pack stations, hopeful that the trains would start again. Trains in Tokyo run like clockwork and when they have temporary problems, they usually are running within an hour.

But the company announced late in the day that services would not resume for the rest of the day, sending a crowd pouring into the streets.

Government spokesman Yukio Edano advised commuters to stay where they were to avoid injuries. But people flooded train stations and stood in long lines for cabs, trying to find a way home.

Yokohama Arena, a concert hall in a Tokyo suburb, near a major bullet-train station, which handles not only Tokyo commuters but travel throughout Japan, was offered as an emergency place to stay overnight.

"There has never been a big earthquake like this, when all the railways stopped and so this is a first for us," said arena official Hideharu Terada. "People are trickling in. They are all calm."

Yokohama city hall officials put up posters at stations, inviting people to stay, and planned to provide blankets and other amenities, he said.

"I thought I was going to die," said marketing company employee Koto Fujikawa, 28, who was riding the monorail when the quake hit, and had to walk to the nearest station, picking her way along the narrow, elevated tracks. "It felt like the whole structure was collapsing."


http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3744995


Sending up prayers for the people of the Pacific Rim!! Especially in Japan!

Just found out my cousin, Jeff Carson, and his family are SOMEWHERE in Japan!!

PLEASE send prayers and good juju for him, his family, and ALL the people on the Pacific Rim!!

Videos-

Moment the quake hit Japan-http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3744968


Oil refinery burns in Japan-http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3744994


Tsunami water rushes city-http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3745029

Magnitude-6.5 quake near Indonesia
No immediate reports of damage or injuries


BALI, Indonesia (AP) - A powerful earthquake off Indonesia rattled the popular resort island of Bali early Friday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, officials said.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the 6.5-magnitude quake struck at 1:08 a.m. (1708 GMT Thursday) and was centered 315 miles (510 kilometers) beneath the ocean floor.

It hit waters 160 miles (260 kilometers) northeast of Bali.

Beni Hendrawanto, of the country's geological and meteorology department, said it could be felt in the main city of Denpasar but there were no initial reports of damage or injuries.

Indonesia is located on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.


http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3743887

Japan issues emergency at nuke plant
There is no radiation leak

Updated: Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 7:14 AM EST
Published : Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 6:28 AM EST

TOKYO (AP) - Japan declared a state of emergency Friday at a nuclear power plant after its cooling system failed following a massive earthquake. There was no radiation leak.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the measure was a precaution and that the Fukushima No. 1 power plant was not in immediate danger. The plant has shut down.

The plant experienced a mechanical failure in the system needed to cool the reactor after a power failure during Friday's earthquake. The reactor core remains hot and requires cooling after a shutdown.

"We launched the measure so we can be fully prepared for the worst scenario," he said. "We are using all our might to deal with the situation."

It was the first time Japan has declared a state of emergency at a nuclear power plant.

Fukushima is just south of the worst-hit Miyagi prefecture, where a fire broke out at another nuclear plant. The blaze was in a turbine building at one of the Onagawa power plants; smoke could be seen coming out of the building, which is separate from the plant's reactor, Tohoku Electric Power Co. said.

Another plant at Onagawa is experiencing a water leak.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the 2:46 p.m. quake was a magnitude 8.9, the biggest earthquake to hit Japan since officials began keeping records in the late 1800s.

A tsunami warning was issued for a number of Pacific, Southeast Asian and Latin American nations.


http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3744953

World's strongest earthquakes, tsunamis

Updated: Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 7:19 AM EST
Published : Friday, 11 Mar 2011, 7:18 AM EST

* Associated Press

— March 11, 2011: A magnitude 8.9 quake strikes off the northeast coast of Japan, sending a tsunami across the Pacific and killing a still-undetermined number of people.

— October 2010: A volcanic eruption and a tsunami kill more than 500 people in Indonesia.

— February 2010: A 8.8 magnitude quake shakes Chile, generating a tsunami and killing 524 people.

— September 2009: A magnitude 8.0 earthquake unleashes tsunamis of up to 40 feet (12 meters) and killing 194 people in the South Pacific, including 34 in American Samoa.

— September 2007: A 7.8 magnitude earthquake rattles Sumatra island, triggering regional tsunami alerts and damaging scores of buildings.

— September 2007: An earthquake measured at a magnitude of 8.4 near Sumatra triggers a wave in the coastal city of Padang. The tremor kills at least 25 people and injures around 50.

— April 2007: At least 28 people in the Solomon Islands die in a tsunami and earthquake measured at a magnitude of 8.1.

— July 2006: A magnitude 6.1 earthquake triggers a tsunami off Java island's southern coast, killing at least 600 people.

— March 2005: A magnitude 8.6 quake in northern Sumatra kills about 1,300 people.

— December 2004: An Indian Ocean tsunami, triggered by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake, kills 230,000 in a dozen countries.

— August 1976: A magnitude 8.0 earthquake hits near the islands of Mindanao and Sulu in the Philippines, generating a tsunami and leaving at least 5,000 dead.

— March 1964: A 9.2 magnitude earthquake in Prince William Sound, Alaska, kills 131 people, including 128 from a tsunami.

— May 1960: A magnitude 9.5 earthquake in southern Chile and ensuing tsunami kill at least 1,716 people.

— November 1952: A magnitude 9.0 quake in Kamchatka causes damage but no reported deaths despite setting off 30-foot (9.1-meter) waves in Hawaii.

— August 1950: A magnitude 8.6 earthquake in Assam, Tibet, kills at least 780 people.

— April 1946: An earthquake measured at a magnitude of 8.1 near Unimak Islands, Alaska, triggers a tsunami, killing 165 people, mostly in Hawaii.

— January 1906: A magnitude 8.8 quake off the coast of Ecuador and Colombia generates a tsunami that kills at least 500 people.

— August 1868: A magnitude 9.0 quake in Arica, Peru (now Chile) generates catastrophic tsunamis; more than 25,000 people were killed in South America.

— April 1868: A 7.9-magnitude earthquake strikes the Big Island, Hawaii, killing 77 people, including 46 from a tsunami.

— November 1755: A magnitude 8.7 quake and ensuing tsunami in Lisbon, Portugal, kill an estimated 60,000 people and destroy much of Lisbon.

— July 1730: A magnitude 8.7 quake in Valparasio, Chile, kills at least 3,000 people.

— January 1700: A magnitude 9.0 quake shakes present-day Northern California, Oregon, Washington and British Colombia and triggers tsunami that damages villages in Japan.

____

Sources: U.S. Geological Survey, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology and WHO's International Disaster Database


http://www.wivb.com/dpps/news/world/...11-jgr_3744990

I tried to find the family via Google People Finder, but no luck.

I'm hoping that's GOOD NEWS. Like they haven't been found among the dead.

For those who need it, here's the link-Look for the box on the right side of the page.

http://www.google.com/crisisresponse...quake2011.html

How to help earthquake victims in Japan, Pacific

Here are some ways to help victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and others throughout the Pacific:

— AMERICAN RED CROSS — U.S. mobile phone users can text REDCROSS to 90999 to add $10 automatically to your phone bill. Or visit http://www.redcross.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS.

— INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CORPS — Sending relief teams and supplies to the area. Call 1-800-481-4462, or visit http://internationalmedicalcorps.org

— SAVE THE CHILDREN — The relief effort providing food, medical care and education to children is accepting donations through mobile phones by texting JAPAN to 20222 to donate $10. People can also call 1-800-728-3843 during business hours or visit www.savethechildren.org/japanquake to donate online.

— GLOBAL GIVING — The non-profit which works through grassroots efforts says Americans can text JAPAN to 50555 to give $10 through their phone bill. Or visit http://www.globalgiving.org/

— INTERACTION — The group is the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations and lists many ways to help on its site, http://www.interaction.org

— NETWORK FOR GOOD — The aggregator of charities has a list of programs and ways to donate to relief efforts. Visit http://www.networkforgood.org

Japan warns of radiation leak from quake-hit plants
By Osamu Tsukimori and Mayumi Negishi Osamu Tsukimori And Mayumi Negishi – 2 hrs 15 mins ago

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan warned of a possible radiation leak on Saturday as authorities battled to contain rising pressure at two nuclear plants damaged by a massive earthquake, and were moving tens of thousands of residents in the area out of harm's way.

Tokyo Electric Power Co said it has begun steps to release pressure at its two nuclear power plants in Fukushima, located some 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo.

While some radiation leakage could be expected, Naoto Sekimura, a professor at the University of Tokyo, said a major radioactive disaster was not likely.

"No Chernobyl is possible at a light water reactor. Loss of coolant means a temperature rise, but it also will stop the reaction," he said.

"Even in the worst-case scenario, that would mean some radioactive leakage and equipment damage, but not an explosion. If venting is done carefully, there will be little leakage. Certainly not beyond the 3 km radius."

Kyodo news agency reported that authorities had begun evacuating about 20,000 people from the vicinity of one of the plants, the Daini plant. Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who was flying by helicopter to view the plant by air, had earlier ordered that residents within a 10 km radius to be evacuated from the other plant, the Daiichi plant.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said amount of leaked radiation would likely be small.

"It's possible that radioactive material in the reactor vessel could leak outside but the amount is expected to be small, and the wind blowing toward the sea will be considered," he told a news conference.

TEPCO said it had lost ability to control pressure in some of the reactors at its Daini plant as it had with the Daiichi plant. Pressure was stable inside the reactors of the Daini plant but rising in the containment vessels, a spokesman said.

Pressure at one Daiichi reactor may have risen to 2.1 times the designed capacity, the trade ministry said.

The cooling problems at the Japanese plant raised fears of a repeat of 1979's Three Mile Island accident, the most serious in the history of the U.S. nuclear power industry. However, experts said the situation was, so far, less serious.

Equipment malfunctions, design problems and human error led to a partial meltdown of the reactor core at the Three Mile Island plant, but only minute amounts of dangerous radioactive gases were released.

"The situation is still several stages away from Three Mile Island when the reactor container ceased to function as it should," said Tomoko Murakami, leader of the nuclear energy group at Japan's Institute of Energy Economics.

Japan informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that the quake and tsunami cut the supply of off-site power to the plant and diesel generators intended to provide back-up electricity to the cooling system.

"(It's) a sign that the Japanese are pulling out all the stops they can to prevent this accident from developing into a core melt and also prevent it from causing a breach of the containment (system) from the pressure that is building up inside the core because of excess heat," said Mark Hibbs, a nuclear expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Radiation levels detected at the control unit of the reactors at the Daiichi plant were not ones that would require workers at the plant to evacuate, a trade ministry official said, adding that radiation at the control unit has risen to about 1,000 times the normal level.

The Union of Concerned Scientists, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization, said this power failure resulted in one of the most serious conditions that can affect a nuclear plant -- a station blackout -- during which off-site power and on-site emergency alternating current (AC) power is lost.

Nuclear plants generally need AC power to operate the motors, valves and instruments that control the systems that provide cooling water to the radioactive core. If all AC power is lost, the options to cool the core are limited.

If the core overheats, then the fuel would become damaged and a molten mass could melt through the reactor vessel, releasing a large amount of radioactivity into the containment building surrounding the vessel, the UCS said.

It added that it was not clear if the quake had undermined the containment building to contain pressure from any meltdown and allow radioactivity to leak out.

Power supply systems that would provide emergency electricity for the plant were being put in place, the World Nuclear Association said, with a source in the organization saying "the situation is improving".

The reactors shut down due to the earthquake account for 18 percent of Japan's nuclear power generating capacity.

Nuclear power produces about 30 percent of the country's electricity. Many reactors are located in earthquake-prone zones such as Fukushima and Fukui on the coast.

The IAEA estimates that around 20 percent of nuclear reactors around the world are currently operating in areas of significant seismic activity.

It said the sector began putting more emphasis on external hazards after an earthquake hit TEPCO's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in July 2007, until then the largest to ever affect a nuclear facility.

When the earthquake hit the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, four reactors shut down automatically. Water containing radioactive material was released into the sea, but without an adverse effect on human health or the environment, it said.

TEPCO had been operating three out of six reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant at the time of the quake, all of which shut down.

A spokesman said that there were no concerns of a leak for the remaining three reactors at the plant, which had been shut for planned maintenance.

(Additional reporting by Risa Maeda, Kiyoshi Takenaka and Chikako Mogi in Tokyo and Fredrik Dahl in Vienna; Writing by Edwina Gibbs; Editing by Jonathan Thatcher)


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110312/..._quake_reactor

U.S. readies relief for quake-hit ally Japan
By Patricia Zengerle and David Morgan Patricia Zengerle And David Morgan – 1 hr 49 mins ago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama sent condolences to the people of Japan on Friday and said the United States would provide any help its close ally needed after a massive earthquake and tsunami killed hundreds.

The Defense Department was preparing American forces in the Pacific Ocean to provide relief after the quake, which generated a tsunami that headed across the Pacific past Hawaii and toward the west coast of the U.S. mainland.

Authorities said hundreds of people were killed in Japan and the toll was expected to surpass 1,000.

Obama was awakened by his chief of staff, Bill Daley, at about 4 a.m. EST and called Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan later in the morning.

"On behalf of the American people, I conveyed our deepest condolences, especially to the victims and their families, and I offered our Japanese friends whatever assistance is needed," Obama said at a midday news conference.

"I'm heartbroken by this tragedy," Obama said.

"The Japanese people are such close friends of ours," he added. "That just makes our concerns that much more acute."

Obama said Kan told him that so far there were no signs of a radiation leak at a nuclear plant hit by the quake.

Earlier, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had said U.S. Air Force "assets" in Japan had delivered coolant to a nuclear plant. However, a U.S. official said Japan had asked the United States for the coolant, but ultimately handled the matter on its own.

'DICE ROLL'

Nuclear expert Edwin Lyman from the Union of Concerned Scientists told Reuters that although he did not have full information about what had happened at Tokyo Electric Power Co's nuclear plant in Fukushima, "every indication is that the type of event that has occurred there is one of the most serious things that can happen in a nuclear reactor."

He said that in the worst case, inability to cool the radioactive core would cause it to melt down, and escape into a containment building that is the last barrier to having radiation escape into the atmosphere.

"Then it's a dice roll whether or not the containment will retain its integrity and prevent a large radiological release," said Lyman.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters traveling with him in Bahrain that U.S. troops and military facilities in Japan were in good shape and willing to help.

"It's obviously a very sophisticated country but this is a huge disaster and we will do all, anything we are asked to do to help out," he said.

The military effort included at least six Navy ships, Pentagon spokeswoman Navy Commander Leslie Hullryde said.

The State Department said embassy operations in Japan were moved from Tokyo to another location as a precaution.

There have been no reports of Americans killed or injured in the quake. A State Department travel alert strongly urged Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Japan.

"Strong aftershocks are likely for weeks following a strong earthquake such as this one," it said.

The State Department said it was setting up an e-mail address and telephone number to handle inquiries from people with relatives in Japan.

(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed, David Alexander and Paul Eckert; editing by Philip Barbara)


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110312/...apan_quake_usa