JAPAN SAGA – AT 9:06 A.M. ET:  With new military action in the Mideast, we've been distracted from the serious drama going on in Japan, as workers, many risking their lives and health, try to tame a damaged nuclear plant.  Day by day progress is being made, but the outcome still is uncertain.  From Fox:

The operator of Japan's leaking nuclear plant says power lines have been hooked up to all six reactor units, though more work is needed before electricity can run through them.

The plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company, announced the hookup Tuesday but cautioned that workers must check pumps, motors and other equipment before the electricity is turned on.

Reconnecting the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex to the electrical grid is a significant step in getting control of the overheated reactors and storage pools for spent fuels. But it is likely to be days if not longer before the cooling systems can be powered up, since damaged equipment needs to be replaced and any volatile gas must be vented to avoid an explosion.

Nuclear plant workers resumed work Tuesday morning to restore power and cooling functions at the crippled reactors after smoke was detected at the Unit 2 and 3 reactors, Kyodo News Agency reports.
The operator of the plant told the Kyodo News Agency that firefighters and the Tokyo Electric Power Co. sprayed water onto the spent nuclear fuel rods at the Unit 3 and 4 reactors.

COMMENT:  We are getting a lot of conflicting stories about radiation damage thus far.  We may not know for some time the extent of that damage, or how long some areas around the plant have to remain evacuated.  But, up to now, this has not proved the unmitigated disaster that some disciples of Dr. Gloom had gleefully predicted. 

In assessing radiation damage, scientists will look at the intensity of the radiation, its type, the degree to which a particular type of radiation lasts, dispersal patterns, and medical knowledge.  Fortunately, warning systems are in place.  There is constant monitoring.  This isn't Chernobyl, where Soviet authorities never even warned citizens not to drink milk produced in areas around the stricken plant.

We await further, authoritative information.

March 22, 2011