Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster

On Friday, March 11th, 2011, an undersea earthquake occurred 43 miles off the coast of Japan. The Tohoku Earthquake, a magnitude 9.0 quake, was the fifth largest in recorded history, and the largest to ever hit Japan. In addition to damage done by the earthquake itself, a devastating tsunami soon hit the Japanese shore.

One of the many coastal towns hit by the tsunami was Okuma, in the Fukushima region. This town is home to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, one of the 15 largest power plants in the world. By the time the tsunami hit the power plant, all six generators (Boiling Water Generators) were shut down. Generators 4, 5, and 6 had been shut down for maintenance prior to the quake. Generators 1, 2, and 3 turned off automatically when the earthquake occurred.

Reactors 1, 2, and 3 were being cooled by emergency generators when the tsunami hit. The reactors were built to sustain waves of about 5.7 meters, but this tsunami brought 14 meter high waves. The waves damaged the generators, preventing them from properly cooling the reactors.  The damage also prevented workers from accessing these areas of the plant. The overheated reactors experienced hydrogen explosions, propelling the situation into a full blown nuclear meltdown. Sea water was used to cool the reactors which led to radioactive contamination of sea water. Radioactive material also contaminated the ground and air. Only two workers died at the plant during the earthquake. About 60 other civilians died during the evacuation after the tsunami. Experts say that the radiation from the Fukushima disaster will cause cancer in somewhere between 100-1,000 individuals.