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NRC Releases Transcripts Of Fukushima-Daiichi Telephone Calls

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Unplanned Events & Incidents

The transcripts, published yesterday on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) website, show NRC chairman Gregory Jaczco telling staff in a conversation on 12 March 2011 that “it’s unclear at this point whether this is yet a TMI (Three Mile Island) event, but that it could get there”.

In a later conversation on the same day a senior NRC staff member says based on information in an email, it's evident that there is core damage at that facility (unit 1) and that “they are very recently in the process of venting the containment”.

He says the email makes mention of the wind direction and that they do not have any injection and cooling systems available because of the loss of power.

“But they are using anything that they can find, in terms of fire trucks and perhaps, batteries from vehicles, to power pumps, to get water into the core.”

In various conference calls NRC staff say they have very little information and were trying to verify “basic facts”.

One staff member says: “We understand that unit 1 has high radiation levels. They have vented the containment, perhaps four hours ago, and there is some indication of possible core damage.”

“Beyond that, we have very little facts beyond what we're seeing in the media. Can the IAEA confirm the facts, as they understand them, at the site?”

He adds: “We have had no direct contact with NISA (the Japanese regulator) and it would help us to have any direct confirmation from Japan about the facts around the conditions at the plant.”
The transcripts are online:
http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1205/ML120520264.html

Related reports in the NucNet database (available to subscribers):

• PIME 2012: Fukushima Communications Policy Led To 'Distrust And Doubt' (News in Brief No.29, 13 February 2012)

Source:	NucNet
Editor:	David Dalton

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