It was a risk that the cyclic power outage was not going to be enough the the expected peak of energy consumption tonight. It was quite cold and a lot of heating relies on electricity. But either it was a major miscalculation or people helped out by saving power. I suspect the latter 🙂
As you may know by now, Chie and I are staying in Japan. But we have now packed an emergency bag each (or two ;-)). Just in case the worst should happen we are ready to leave in 5 minutes.
Wouldn’t that be too late you may wonder, but most likely not. The wind today was eastward, away from Japan out over the ocean. The same is predicted for tomorrow. That gives us extra time. Besides, the evacuation zones will expand as the risk increases and that will give an indication as well on when it is time to leave.
And here CNN and BBC are really good sources of information. They have brought good analysis and reports on directives from US and British government. US government also have official nuclear experts in place here in Japan to support the Japanese government in solving the crises. Meaning they should have quite good information.
Finally, in the parking place we have a car full of gas. Well, at least the tank is full of gas 😉 So the plan is to drop by Tokorozawa to pick up Chie’s mother and Coco, and then drive to Osaka to stay at a friends place.
Chie went to the grocery store on her way home after work. To her surprise she found 1.5 liter water bottles in the shelves. Maybe the explanation was that they had introduced a limit of 2 bottles per person. They also had limits on tissues (Kleenex), 1 box per person. Milk and yoghurt, 1 liter of each per person.
There were also limits on toilet paper. 4 rolls per person. Though it seemed strange at first when I heard it as they usually come in packs of 12. The solution? Unpacked and sold 1 by 1.
Basically all things had limitation on how many or how much each person could buy, except meat, frozen food, vegetables and fruits.
Even with the limitations there were some food that were sold out, like rice, mochi (Japanese rice cake that gets sticky when heated), cup noodles, batteries, and bread. Seaweed was also sold out as some professor happened to mention on TV that it contains iodine so it protects somewhat agains some of the radiation (if you eat a ton of it?).
Chie also noted that the gas station in front of BALS Tokyo had opened again. The result? Cars lining up to buy a maximum of 20 liters per car. Even a police car was waiting on its turn to get their 20 liters.
Again, the information regarding the Fukushima #1 power plant provided by TEPCO is below expectations in this type of situation. Also their history includes previous situation where they have hidden information. This makes it difficult not only for normal people to understand what is going on but also for external experts.
The latest development is that it is now feared that the spent fuel rods on top of Reactor #4 is fully exposed. Meaning the radiation levels there may be lethal and may prevent counter measures needed to keep Reactor #3 in a safe state. This has caused US government to recommend evacuation of US citizens within at least 80 km radius from Fukushima #1, or about 1/3 of the way between the power plan and Tokyo.
The strange thing is that this information is coming from CNN and not from Japanese government and TEPCO. It appears that US officials arrived today and they did not see what they expected in terms of the situation at Fukushima #1, which have lead to the evacuation recommendations etc.
While Chie and I are getting ready to go to the office we are also considering staying home. Reason? If the situation is as US government believes then the situation in the other reactors may deteriorate quickly since people cannot get close without risking death or at least severe health consequences.
The only positive news is that TEPCO think they have found a way to redirect electric power to the plant. This means that it may be possible to get the the cooling system running again, and pumps to pump water into the storage compartments of the spent fuel rods.