Radiation levels soar in Japan sea water

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http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2011/03/20113304449336317.html

Radiation levels soar in Japan sea water

Search for quake and tsunami survivors goes on, as readings show radioactive

iodine levels hit 3,355 times legal limit.

Last Modified: 30 Mar 2011 05:33

Radiation levels in sea water near Japan's damaged Fukushima nuclear plant have

reached more than 3,000 times the legal limit, officials said, as efforts

continue to bring the country's nuclear crisis under control.

Japan's nuclear safety agency said on Wednesday that water near the crippled

plant's No. 1 reactor contained radioactive iodine at 3,355 times the legal

limit.

Officials said they did not know what caused the radiation level to rise.

" The figures are rising further. We need to find out as quickly as possible the

causes and to stop them from rising any higher, " Hidehiko Nishiyama, the

agency's deputy director-general, told a news conference.

But he also played down the danger, saying residents had been evacuated from the

area and no fishing was taking place.

" Iodine 131 has a half-life of eight days, and even considering its

concentration in marine life, it will have deteriorated considerably by the time

it reaches people. "

TEPCO president hospitalised

A 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami on March 11 knocked out the cooling

systems of the Fukushima plant's six reactors - sparking explosions and fires

and releasing radiation.

The radiation from the plant northeast of the capital, Tokyo, has wafted into

the air, contaminating farm produce and drinking water, and has also seeped into

the Pacific Ocean.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), the beleaguered utility company that runs the

damaged plant, has been struggling to stabilise the overheated power plant and

contain the radiation.

But in yet another crisis to beset the company, officials announced on Wednesday

that TEPCO's president had been hospitalised with high blood pressure.

Masataka Shimizu, 66, was taken to a Tokyo hospital on Tuesday after suffering

dizziness, Naoki Tsunoda, a TEPCO spokesman, said.

Shimizu had not been seen for nearly two weeks after appearing at a news

conference two days after the devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Humanitarian disaster

Residents within 20 kilometres of the Fukushima plant have been evacuated, while

those up to 30 kilometres have been urged to leave voluntarily as radiation has

made its way into vegetables, raw milk and water.

But the nuclear fears have only compounded the humanitarian disaster following

the earthquake and tsunami. The death toll from the disaster has risen to 11,000

people, with more than 17,000 still missing.

" Now there is concern for a quarter of a million people who have been left

homeless, " Al Jazeera's Marga Ortigas, reporting from the Yamagata prefecture on

Tuesday, said.

Meanwhile, Mueuller, communications delegate for the International Red

Cross, told Al Jazeera that Japan is still in crisis mode.

" It is still very much a disaster zone in those evacuation areas. We are finding

that we have more than 240,000 people who are still living in about 1,900

evacuation centres.

" People are saying that they are getting three square meals a day, they have

water, they have blankets. But heat is a major issue, it is still in short

supply.

" The refineries have come back on line but that is not being seen at the pumps

yet.

" So to either fuel the vehicles to take supplies to the evacuation centres or to

be able to heat these evacuation centres is a real challenge. "