Japan: 9.0 Earthquake-Tsunami-Nuclear Reactor Status #4

[Quiche]

Power company says smoke spotted at another Japanese nuclear plant

Tokyo (CNN) -- Smoke was spotted at another nuclear plant in northeastern Japan on Wednesday, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said.

The company said smoke was detected in the turbine building of reactor No. 1 at the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant around 6 p.m. (5 a.m. ET).

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/30/japan.daini/?hpt=T2

 

[Quiche]

EPA Detects Radioactive Elements From Japan Nuclear Plant in Southern California

Excerpt:
"The radiation levels detected on the filters from California and Washington monitors are hundreds of thousands to millions of times below levels of concern," the agency said.

According to the EPA, filters in Riverside measured:

Cesium-137: 0.00024 picocuries - minute radioactive particles - per cubic meter.

Tellurium-132: 0.0014 picocuries per cubic meter.

Iodine-132: 0.0015 picocuries per cubic meter.

Iodine-131: 0.011 picocuries per cubic meter.

To underscore how harmless these levels are considered, the EPA stated:

"In a typical day, Americans receive doses of radiation from natural sources like rocks, bricks and the sun that are about 100,000 times higher than what we have detected coming from Japan."

http://altadena.patch.com/articles/...-japan-nuclear-plant-in-southern-california-3


Those numbers feel pretty good, but I heard a guy on the news last night that said we're receiving the equivalent of 1/10 of a chest xray every day over here. So, this stuff is cumulative and not restricted to our chests-- how does this add up? And, what about when the sheet hits the fan over there, and there's a groundwater blast?

 

[Quiche]

Here's a conversion table of radioactive elements. We've hear a number of them already-- Sievert, Rem, Rad, becquerel, Gray, now picocuries...

http://www.stevequayle.com/ARAN/rad.conversion.html

 

[dsntslp]

I have to wonder if the word and term usage being confusing is intentional.
Maybe it is just that there are different terms for different chemicals being measured, idk.

 

[waltzingmatilda]

I have an info sheet on the potassium iodide tablets that were provided to us by the NC dept of health and human services. I wish I knew how to post it here for all of you without blowing the margins

Here are the categories on the information sheet and I will include some but not all the info included.....

WHAT IS IT?

HOW DOES IT WORK?

HOW MUCH SHOULD BE TAKEN?
Over 18, 130 mg = 1 tablet
3yrs to 18 yrs, 65 mg = 1/2 tablet
1 mo. to 3 yrs, 32 mg = 1/4 tablet
Birth to 1 month 16 mg = 1/8 tablet
* Adolescents approaching adult size (70 kg = 150 lbs) should receive a full tablet.
( i wonder if this means I should only take 1/2 tablet since I am of small stature?)

IS IT SAFE TO TAKE KI? FDA has determined it is safe for most people. Some may have side effects such as nausea, GI upset, and skin rash. Pregnant women and newborns should not receive more than one dose of KI and should be checked by a doctor soon after taking KI to make sure thyroid function remains normal.

WHO SHOULD NOT TAKE IT? People allergic to iodine.....People who have rare skin disorders, dermatitis herpetiformis or hypocomplementemic vasculitis.

WHEN SHOULD IT BE TAKEN? if a nuclear power plant emergancy occurs (BLAH BLAH)........DO NOT TAKE KI UNLESS PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS TELL YOU TO TAKE IT.

At the bottom of the sheet it says.....

KI will only protect the thyroid from radioactive iodine. If there is a nuclear power plant emergency near you, you must protect your whole body from penetrating radiation and other radioactive materials beside radioactive iodines.

Here's the web address for more info...<www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dph/ki.htm>

I am worried here in NC. We still haven't heard results of the radioactive readings that were taken at the Brunswick plant yesterday by progress energy. We are working on an action plan just in case we need to stay inside.

KI tablets....check
face masks...check
old clothing we can dispose of after the dogs need walking ....check
storing water.....check
duct tape.......check

I am not panicking but just taking precautions as there is really nothing else we can do if this becomes a threat. I REALLY, REALLY worry about the accuracy of the information we are getting. I don't think we will know if there is a danger to the US until the last minute because I don't trust what the energy companies tell us. MOO

wm

 

[drip~drop]

I have an info sheet on the potassium iodide tablets that were provided to us by the NC dept of health and human services. I wish I knew how to post it here for all of you without blowing the margins

Here are the categories on the information sheet and I will include some but not all the info included.....

WHAT IS IT?

HOW DOES IT WORK?

HOW MUCH SHOULD BE TAKEN?
Over 18, 130 mg = 1 tablet
3yrs to 18 yrs, 65 mg = 1/2 tablet
1 mo. to 3 yrs, 32 mg = 1/4 tablet
Birth to 1 month 16 mg = 1/8 tablet
* Adolescents approaching adult size (70 kg = 150 lbs) should receive a full tablet.
( i wonder if this means I should only take 1/2 tablet since I am of small stature?)

IS IT SAFE TO TAKE KI? FDA has determined it is safe for most people. Some may have side effects such as nausea, GI upset, and skin rash. Pregnant women and newborns should not receive more than one dose of KI and should be checked by a doctor soon after taking KI to make sure thyroid function remains normal.

WHO SHOULD NOT TAKE IT? People allergic to iodine.....People who have rare skin disorders, dermatitis herpetiformis or hypocomplementemic vasculitis.

WHEN SHOULD IT BE TAKEN? if a nuclear power plant emergancy occurs (BLAH BLAH)........DO NOT TAKE KI UNLESS PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS TELL YOU TO TAKE IT.

At the bottom of the sheet it says.....

KI will only protect the thyroid from radioactive iodine. If there is a nuclear power plant emergency near you, you must protect your whole body from penetrating radiation and other radioactive materials beside radioactive iodines.

Here's the web address for more info...<www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dph/ki.htm>

I am worried here in NC. We still haven't heard results of the radioactive readings that were taken at the Brunswick plant yesterday by progress energy. We are working on an action plan just in case we need to stay inside.

KI tablets....check
face masks...check
old clothing we can dispose of after the dogs need walking ....check
storing water.....check
duct tape.......check

I am not panicking but just taking precautions as there is really nothing else we can do if this becomes a threat. I REALLY, REALLY worry about the accuracy of the information we are getting. I don't think we will know if there is a danger to the US until the last minute because I don't trust what the energy companies tell us. MOO

wm

I don't trust a thing we are being told.:snooty:
imo

 

[Quiche]

I have to wonder if the word and term usage being confusing is intentional.
Maybe it is just that there are different terms for different chemicals being measured, idk.

Yeah, I think so-- why make us do the math? I had to look up the meaning of the tilde. :waitasec:

Wikiquote: In mathematics, the tilde operator (Unicode U+223C), sometimes called “twiddle”, is often used to denote an equivalence relation between two objects. Thus “x ~ y” means “x is equivalent to y”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilde#Mathematics

 

[Daisyjane]

Here's a map showing projected path of radioactive particles for the rest of this week. http://transport.nilu.no/browser/fpv_fuku?fpp=conccol_Xe-133_;region=DMANC1

Hefty dose of it over the midwest on April 1-2.

 

[Quiche]

Japan nuclear crisis: evacuees turned away from shelters

Quote: Hospitals and temporary refuges are demanding that evacuees provide them with certificates confirming that they have not been exposed to radiation before they are admitted.

and

Medical experts have condemned those that are meant to be assisting the evacuees for turning them away. "This is a knee-jerk reaction based on the fear that these people are going to harm you," said Dr. Robert Gale, a haematologist at Imperial College, London, who is advising the Japanese government on health issues.

"If someone has been contaminated externally, such as on their shoes or clothes, then precautions can be taken, such as by removing those garments to stop the contamination from getting into a hospital," he told The Daily Telegraph. "That is very easy to do, but unfortunately I'm not surprised this sort of thing is happening."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...risis-evacuees-turned-away-from-shelters.html

Where the heck are they supposed to get a certificate?!

 

[peeples]

Just saw an advertisement for NBC nightly news with Brian Williams
Tonight he's going to talk about the radiation detectors around the US and how by the time they set off an alert it's probably already too late for those affected.
he's also going to talk about the worse case scenerio!

 

[peeples]

Here's a map showing projected path of radioactive particles for the rest of this week. http://transport.nilu.no/browser/fpv_fuku?fpp=conccol_Xe-133_;region=DMANC1

Hefty dose of it over the midwest on April 1-2.

Lovely.. not just for us.. about the soil that grows most of the grain for the US for human and animal consumption and for ethanol and for export...

 

[Daisyjane]

Lovely.. not just for us.. about the soil that grows most of the grain for the US for human and animal consumption and for ethanol and for export...

Yeah, it's hitting U.S. right in the breadbasket, right during planting season. By NEXT Easter, we just might HAVE rabbits that lay hot pink and neon green eggs!

 

[cluciano63]

What would be the point of taking something to protect only one gland/organ of the body? I am confused

 

[waltzingmatilda]

What would be the point of taking something to protect only one gland/organ of the body? I am confused

I am confused too, clu! I have too many questions bouncing around in my mind!

Perhaps someone with medical experience will check in and elaborate for us.

NURSE!!!!

wm

 

[Quiche]

What would be the point of taking something to protect only one gland/organ of the body? I am confused

From what I understand, the thyroid is especially vulnerable to even small amounts of radiation. jmo

 

[Quiche]

Nuclear Radiation & Your Thyroid


Excerpt:
Your Thyroid is the Most Vulnerable

In a nuclear radiation disaster, even a &#8220;scare&#8221;, there are 3 things to do:

Protect your thyroid, the most vulnerable organ in your body.
Remove as much of the radiation as possible from your body, immediately.
Protect your DNA from genetic mutation.

and

As mentioned, radioactive iodine-131 is one of the elements likely to be released into the upper atmosphere after a nuclear event. Carried great distances on high speed winds, it can then drop down into the lower atmosphere, where it may be breathed into the lungs and contaminate crops on the ground, entering our food supply. Fruits and grapes grown for juice and wine are particularly susceptible.

The problem, if you will, is the thyroid gland has a tremendous affinity for iodine &#8211; radioactive or otherwise. In other words, the thyroid gland quickly absorbs iodine, regardless of whether it is natural or radioactive.

and

Consuming natural iodine before exposure will merely &#8220;pre-fill&#8221; your thyroid, so that there is no room for the radioactive iodine. Supplementation with natural iodine after exposure is too late, as the radioactive iodine will have already been absorbed by the thyroid, leaving no room for your protective, natural iodine to save your thyroid from damage.

http://www.askdrgarland.com/?p=3994

 

[ThoughtFox]

What would be the point of taking something to protect only one gland/organ of the body? I am confused

Because the main material released from a nuclear disaster is radioactive iodine which can build up in the thyroid. The theory behind iodine pills is that taking the non-radioactive iodine keeps the bad kind from being stored in your body where it can kill you, then or later.

http://nuclear-news.net/2011/03/28/radioactive-iodine-and-thyroid-cancer/

The principal radiation source of concern is radioactive iodine including iodine-131, a radioactive isotope that presents a special risk to health because iodine is concentrated in the thyroid gland and exposure of the thyroid to high levels of radioactive iodine may lead to development of thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer years later. During the Chernobyl nuclear plant accident in 1986, people in the surrounding region were exposed to radioactive iodine principally from intake of food and milk from contaminated farmlands. As demonstrated by the Chernobyl experience, pregnant women, fetuses, infants and children are at the highest risk for developing thyroid cancer whereas adults over age 20 are at negligible risk.

Radioiodine uptake by the thyroid can be blocked by taking potassium iodide (KI) pills or solution, most importantly in these sensitive populations.

 

[Quiche]

Radiation exposure in the United States: Ask the expert

Q.
Radiation - duration of impact
Given the stories of radioactivity now circulating the globe, and recently being detected in the rainwater on the east coast of the US, exactly how long will the water remain radioactive? When exactly will that rainwater lose all radioactivity?

&#8211;
March 29, 2011 11:15 PM
Permalink

A.
Jonathan Links :

Radioactive decay occurs monoexponentially with time. A monoexponential curve never, in theory, goes to zero. So, the real question is when will the levels become so low as to be indistinguishable from background? That could actually take years in some cases, with radionuclides with decades-long half-lives (e.g., Cs-137) ... depending on environmental clearance.

http://live.washingtonpost.com/radiation-concerns-in-the-us.html

Lots of good questions here...

 

[not_my_kids]

From what I understand, the thyroid is especially vulnerable to even small amounts of radiation. jmo

I think that's because of buildup. If radiation gets on your skin, you can wash it off and sweat it out of your pores. It doesn't last long. If it gets into your intestinal tract, it passes pretty quick when you perform your normal functions. The intestinal tract is tough, there is so much bacteria and such there that it has to keep out of the rest of the body that things don't absorb very well from the intestines or stomach. When it goes into the lungs, that's when it gets tricky, because the lining of the lungs is to thin that it easily passes to the blood. Then it goes everywhere, to the bones, the organs, and most of the tissues. Some organs pass things through fast, even radiation, but the thyroid isn't one of them, because it doesn't produce huge amounts of anything (what it does make is essential, but not made in huge amounts), so there's no way to flush it out fast enough.

Once again, I think. I'm not a medical pro.

 

[peeples]

I can't remember if this has been posted..
It's about radiation in OH rain.

Students had been taking samples for something else and came across the radiation

http://www.fox8.com/news/japan-eart...nd-in-cleveland-rainwater-txt,0,1157966.story