Possible dual criticalities at Fukushima Daiichi.

There are multiple things going on at Fukushima right now. I have spent an inordinate amount of time trying to get some rhyme or reason as to what is happening there recently. It’s pretty baffling.

From a comment I made here on Oct. 8:

Bobby1
on October 8, 2013 at 11:31 pm said:
There was some kind of event on Oct. 7 at Fuku… I don’t want to say it’s a criticality… spikes in radiation on the 7th and 8th…

http://blog.livedoor.jp/home_make-toaru/archives/7351820.html

Plus smoke observed on the webcam. Supposedly somebody inadvertently turned off the cooling system in the reactors… that wouldn’t cause this. I’m thinking this was some kind of cover story…

Also 230,000 Bq/liter of tritium from groundwater measured near tanks… This might be a tank leak, maybe not. Beta radiation 680,000 Bq… enormous…

Cesium levels increased by a factor of 10 on Oct. 9 vs the day before, inside the silt fence at the seawater intake of Unit 2:

http://www.tepco.co.jp/cc/press/2013/1231309_5117.html (Japanese)

So perhaps this is associated with the “event.” They didn’t mention strontium, tritium or beta. I would think this is from an aboveground source. Hard to know.

The tritium levels in the underground water have increased again, to 260,000 becquerels:

It is the underground water pollution just a record high yesterday, but it has detected a higher number… Radioactivity was detected for the first time from the groundwater in the 8th September of this year, radioactivity of 4200 Bq per liter of degree only was not detected at that time. When compared with the 260 000 becquerels of this time, there is a difference even 61 times indeed, it could be said to be a very dramatic surge… A number as high as competitive contaminated water it is in the tank, and also the possibility that nuclear fuel melted in the basement of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant reacts with groundwater, has created a new contaminated water a large amount of high is. I think that steam is occurring even now in Unit 3 is the evidence, and he is like underground water vein deep in Unit 3.

This Japanese blogger is probably right, Unit 3 is at it again, causing a dramatic increase in amounts of tritium, strontium, and other beta radionuclides in the groundwater. This would be due to a re-criticality. But it is possible that massive leaks have erupted in the tanks, which would also explain these measurements, and which would also be bad news, but would not have resulted in the atmospheric contamination aspect of a criticality.

On October 9, Tepco reported a measurement of 1,200 Bq/liter of radioactive cesium near the seawater intake of Unit 2. This is the highest amount of cesium detected in the port area in 2 years. It had surged over 1,000% since the previous day.

Then it was discovered that 1,400 Bq/m3 of cesium was found in the ocean, one kilometer from the port. Obviously the silt fence (which gets damaged every time there is a storm) did next to nothing in preventing cesium from getting out of the port.

And, according to our Japanese blogger,

After all, such as the cause of abnormality of Fukuichi camera that occurred on October 7, was unknown, but from the fact that things like that exposure of six workers immediately after that also is occurring, and announced officially really Just do not, issue critical or would not than had occurred seven days before and after October? Including Tokyo, has been observed spike in radiation dose in eastern Japan in early October… Because there is a track record of said large lie many times in the past, TEPCO is no wonder even if you did not hide any abnormal situation really.

Six workers were contaminated with radioactive water, in doses of up to one sievert. The spikes in atmospheric radiation observed on Oct. 7 and 8, the cesium in the port and ocean, and the tritium underground. Something is abnormal.

There are also reports of metal mouth, headache, and chest pain in the Tokyo area since Monday:

Shozo @ Etosha0824 9h
Taste disturbance has continued ever since Monday. Taste of the so-called metal. Chest pain and slight headache.

Valvane @ Valvane 7h
Is herpes in the corners of the mouth from Tuesday around. Though it is the amount of work and content as usual Saturday and Sunday …, it is easy to fatigue or more for some reason, headache was also. After the story of the human part, the person was also similar. Place of business this Saturday and Sunday, Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture. @ Etosha0824

There are two separate things going on. The tritium underground, and the cesium in the sea. They are different. The tritium can be explained by underground corium. The cesium is more likely from an aboveground source. Spent fuel pool #2 comes to mind, since the cesium was detected near the seawater intake of #2.

The webcam has showed smoke, spiderwebs and other phenomena. This probably started on Oct. 5 or 6.

I want to stress that this as not as obvious as the criticalities that occurred in May-June and July-August. So hopefully, any plumes released will not be as contaminated as in those time periods. But it is still very early in this event. The plume would be showing up on the west coast in a couple days to a few days.

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