Earthquake Stories

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Earthquake Stories

(Administrator) 2011-03-14, 14:28 #1

Member since May 2011 · 2201 posts · Location: Brisbane
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Subject: Earthquake Stories

The recent quake, tsunami and nuclear kabooms in Japan have been unbelievable to watch. Having recently been through the flood in Queensland I have a new appreciation for the kind of shit they're going through in Northern Japan.

Everyone we know is safe, but many are understandably freaked out. My immediate family is safe and suffered little more than some fallen-over gear and some freaked out pets.

One woman we know walked ten kilometres to get home from work. It was dark, the power was out, the trains weren't running, and it's still pretty cold in Japan. Happily for her she was met halfway by her husband, who walked home with her.

Another couldn't get home the night of the quake, and slept in the office with workmates she loathes. She walked seven kilometres the next day to get home. She now says that there is very little food, no gasoline, and communications are a bit iffy. Her parents go to the bank and are gone for hours, making her worry.

More updates as I get 'em. =)

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Over a thousand bodies were just found in Minamisanriku, the village where over 10,000 have gone missing.

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Rolling blackouts were due to start today, but have not yet happened because so many people have managed to cut their use back. Businesses are not lighting signs, running fewer internal lights, not heating buildings as much as normal. Also, a lot of trains aren't running, so much less power needed there.

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Reactor 3 has exploded. video here on Australia's channel 9.

BLEARGH

This post was edited 2 times, last on 2011-03-14, 14:54 by NFG.

(Administrator) 2011-03-14, 16:21 #2

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As predicted, the Fukushima plants have kicked off discussions in other countries about the safety of nuclear power (in Germany, via Der Spiegel). I'd just like to point out that it's far too early to be using this as either a pro or con in the nuclear power debate. And FWIW I'd rather they had nuclear power than burned more coal.

Here's a short but interesting interview with a journalist in Japan.

BLEARGH

2011-03-14, 17:55 #3

Member since Apr 2009 · 59 posts · Location: Bendigo
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Just adding a little on the explosion of the No. 3 reactor at Fukushima; because although the demographic on this site seems to be skewed towards the more intellectually proficient, many people let themselves be ruled by fear, especially when dealing with Nuclear power sources.

The explosion was a Hydrogen explosion. This occurred because of a rather simple chain of events.
Coolant systems were down (either due to the backup power failure in the plant, or possibly ruptured coolant lines, I'm not sure about this because no-one out of Japan seems to know). Because of the lack of cooling temeratures in the core rose, which caused the zircaloy chambers which hold the control rods to react with the water coolant, creating hydrogen gas.

I'm not sure if the gas exploded INSIDE the reactor core, or if it was vented and then exploded; but the after-effects of such an explosion have seen before.
In 1979 the TMI-2 reactor at the Three Mile Island plant in the USA underwent a series of actions which culminated in the same thing we've seen in Japan. A Hydrogen explosion. Three Mile Island is still referred to as a tragedy, although it had no long-lasting effects on the environment surrounding the site. Whilst small amounts of radiation where allowed into the environment, but nothing exceeding world health standards for radiation levels.
So Japan is safe in the same way. despite all media sources running around yelling 'BOOM'. The Fukushima power plant should remain relatively harmless.

And if you're still scared for people in the area (and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they shouldn't evacuate just to be safe) then take in this little fact; to help ward of mutant babies for generations to come, they can plant sunflowers, which absorb radiation, and make everything look nice.

(Administrator) 2011-03-14, 19:13 #4

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Entirely true, thanks for mentioning it! These reactors were designed for this. The parts that are exploding are still important parts, but they're not the parts that'll make the town glow for 400 years.

Here's a more detailed article on these light-water reactors for anyone craving a little more detail.

And if you want more still, here's a very specific analysis of the Japanese situation, from Scientific American.

Quote by SA:
...the type of accident that is occurring in Japan is known as a station blackout. It means loss of offsite AC power—power lines are down—and then a subsequent failure of emergency power on site—the diesel generators. It is considered to be extremely unlikely, but the station blackout has been one of the great concerns for decades.

"The probability of this occurring is hard to calculate [...] So we're in uncharted territory, we're in a land where probability says we shouldn't be. And we're hoping that all of the barriers to release of radioactivity will not fail."

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Here's a series of amazing photographs of the tsunami.

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Here's a video shot by a guy who was standing on dry streets but soon forced to very high ground to avoid the water, then floating cars, then trucks, then migrating houses.

BLEARGH

This post was edited on 2011-03-14, 19:24 by NFG.

(Administrator) 2011-03-14, 19:56 #5

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Talking to family in Japan. Even in Saitama prefecture, which is near Tokyo (several hundred kilometres from the main action), there are food shortages. People were panic buying and the shelves were bare of everything but a few fresh fish and vegetables. Anything that would last without power was snapped up. I could see this coming, it happened here in Queensland, but in Japan they were a little surprised.

They said the worst thing is the uncertainty.

[edited: Apparently I misunderstood part of the emotional response, so I've removed it]

BLEARGH

This post was edited 2 times, last on 2011-03-20, 18:29 by NFG.

(Administrator) 2011-03-15, 07:31 #6

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The world is abuzz with news about the Fukushima reactors in Japan this morning, and it reveals exactly how terrified people are about the dangers of nuclear power. As mentioned above the Germans anti-nuke brigade is using it to full advantage, and as predicted the British are too.

Quote by BBC:
Even environmental groups in the United States, unlike in Europe, believe that nuclear power has a place because of its light carbon footprint.

But this was a fragile consensus and it is hard to see how it won't now come under pressure.

The basic chain of failure for these reactors in Japan is this: The quake was seven times larger than they were built for, but they survived and went into shut-down mode. They needed time to cool off, so they kept pumping the water in. If you stop cooling them before they're totally shut down, they'll heat up again. Diesel generators pumped the cooling water in, until the tsunami wiped out the generators. So they ran on battery power until new generators could be brought in, but these new generators had the wrong plugs on 'em, and couldn't be used. Or something. This is a bone-headed failure point right here, and the reason for the crisis.

But these plants are pretty robust. The very worst-case end-of-the-world scenario is a bunch of melted nuclear fuel leaking out and needing a swift cleanup. There is no chance of a Chernobyl-style blowout. So, really, the worst case isn't so bad.

Hopefully.

The NY Times has a great article that talks about this morning's news in detail. It doesn't sound good but it's not really bad. Not yet, and hopefully not ever.

This BBC article talks a bit about the failure threat, covering many aspects of the situation in great detail.

BLEARGH

(Administrator) 2011-03-17, 07:31 #7

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Things seem to be going poorly in Japan, with water-bombing helicopters abandoning their runs due to the radiation levels near the reactors. There's panic buying of potassium iodide around the world, which angers me a bit, since even a modicum of research would show that the kind of radiation it protects against will be harmless long before it reaches places like Australia or the US.

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The American government is urging a 50km safe zone around the reactors, the Japanese gov't only a quarter that. Guys, seriously, this is important. Get your shit together.

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The governor of Tokyo recently apologized for saying stupid things about the quake and how the Japanese people may have deserved it. What a dipshit.

Quote by Ishihara:
"I think (the disaster) is tembatsu (divine punishment), although I feel sorry for disaster victims," he said.

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You may have heard about some griefers in America bleating about the quake being karmic retribution for Pearl Harbor, as if that makes any sense at all, but did you know there were similar things going on in China? This excellent post talks a bit about the Chinese reaction, and points out one sad and true fact: much like in Korea Chinese kids are taught in school and museums and similar places that the Japanese are evil . No wonder they're assholes towards Japan sometimes, they've been told their whole lives that it's true.

BLEARGH

(Administrator) 2011-03-17, 15:26 #8

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Subject: You just don't think about these things.

According to a source in Japan some stations have stopped doing full-time coverage of the ongoing disaster north of Tokyo, and have switched to regular programming. Advertisers, however, aren't keen to flog their products when people are still in such a sensitive state, so while they're (presumably) off filming new ones more appropriate to the situation the networks are running public service announcements.

Over and over and over and over, the same ads telling women to get screened for breast cancer, greeting people on the street, etc.

AC Japan has gotten enough complaints about this that they posted an apology for it on their website, although it’s really not their fault. Blame, you know, McDonald’s and Aflac and so on for not having suitably stoic and reserved ads on call for times like these.

You just never think of these things.

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A family friend in the area has turned out to be safe. We had feared the worst, and apparently it was a close call. They relayed a harrowing tale of literally running with the water lapping at their heels. Their home is lost, but they are OK.

BLEARGH

(Administrator) 2011-03-19, 19:03 #9

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Subject: TEPCO suck.

These sorts of thing just piss me off. Tokyo Electric (TEPCO) have a history of lying, bribing and generally fucking up the safety of the reactors they control. Regulators look the other way, inspectors falsify reports and the government pretends not to notice. Then, when shit goes wrong, suddenly all these little decisions return to haunt people.

TEPCO were not prepared for this problem. When the reactors started exploding the prime minister of Japan (Naoto Kan) heard about it on TV before TEPCO told his office. There was talk of TEPCO just walking away from the reactors, but:

The Japanese prime minister has asked TEPCO not to withdraw its workers from the faltering power plant, saying that in the event of a withdrawal he was "100 percent sure the company would collapse". (source)

One of the problems is TEPCO's employees. They make about a hundred bucks a day to run the reactors. I'm sure it's not a difficult job most of the time, but if I were working there I think I'd insist on at least double that. Seriously, a hundred bucks a day? Unreal.

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As if the problems in Japan weren't serious enough, because of the bullshit cowardly actions of these dickheads relief efforts are made much more difficult. People near the reactor who've been asked to remain indoors are supposed to do what, exactly? No power, no food, and no one coming to help? The entire world shifted from the plight of hundreds of thousands of people and focused on the reactors.

I fully expect a few of the TEPCO heads to be found to have committed suicide after this crisis is over. Whether they want to or not.

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Radiation levels in towns where we have friends have spiked and declined. Not many people are worried now, but many are fearfully looking forward.

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Meanwhile, over in the USA, ignorant muck-rakers are getting on TV and saying that radiation can be good for you, at higher levels of radiation than the government says. Ann Coulter apparently confused some basic issues of biology with, well, I haven't got a clue what the fuck she's thinking TBH.

Her shit was pretty thoroughly debunked by Pharyngula.

BLEARGH

This post was edited 2 times, last on 2011-03-20, 18:30 by NFG.

(Administrator) 2011-03-19, 20:44 #10

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Subject: Ongoing

Japan's still getting serious quakes and aftershocks in Ibaraki, south of Fukushima where the reactors are. That's showing up in Saitama where we have family. It's not, like, huge, but believe me you notice a 4 or a 6 magnitude quake, and people are pretty much on edge already.

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Live streaming TV from Japan is often accompanied by commentary from viewers, in a kind of scrolling feed next to the video. When the news announcer comes on and says "Good morning" there's a flurry of "Good morning!" and "I was waiting for you!" in reply. When the emperor of Japan makes a speech, comments like "My majesty!" are repeated from dozens of viewers, and one commenter says "Where are you, emperor? The background looks like Japan but I'm sure you're not still in the country!"

And today, when a Japanese armed forces spokesperson was making an announcement, one commenter said "Why are you wearing camouflage? If you pass out in the power station they'll never find you!"

[Image: http://nfgworld.com/grafx/throwaway/tsunami.jpg]

Video on the left, comments on the right

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Many stations in Japan have stopped round-the-clock coverage of the tsunami and reactor saga because viewers were starting to complain about the incessant depressing news. Now they're running fluff pieces and feel-good filler about puppies and other silly shit.

Ah, Japan. =D

BLEARGH

This post was edited on 2011-03-20, 18:16 by NFG.

2011-03-21, 23:25 #11

Member since Sep 2007 · 173 posts · Location: Kobe, Japan
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Someone posted this on FB earlier today, thought it was quite relevant.
People are not often exposed to the whole 'Sievert' system of measuring radiation so there is a lot of confusion around what it really means, the following chart puts it into perspective quite nicely.
*image is too big for this forum so click here!*
Thanks to XKCD once again!

“Be conservative in what you do; be liberal in what you accept from others.” J. Postel

(Administrator) 2011-04-09, 07:15 #12

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Cabinet Secretary Edano has been verbified. He's long been the favourite public face for this disaster, the one government official who really seems to care, and who seems to prefer honesty over the official line. He's been seen on TV in work clothes, looking haggard after several days of not sleeping. On the video/comment sites mentioned above comments would scroll by like go to sleep and it's OK to stop working for a little while.

Well, now he's been turned into a verb. A whole new word, edaru, means to work beyond your capacity, or to work too hard because you're saddled with a bad boss (the prime minister in this case).

BLEARGH

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