Wednesday, 30 March 2011
The men, known as the Fukushima 50, because that it the maximum number working during any one shift, risk death from massive radiation poisoning as they struggle to contain the crisis.
In heart-breaking emails and texts, they have said goodbye to their families as the radiation levels at the Fukushima plant rise to dangerous levels.
They are working around the clock to stop the wrecked reactors from overheating - taking it in turns to cool them with water.
Nuclear experts have said the men are essentially sacrificing their lives by staying at the plant.
Those that do survive the vast radiation levels will suffer devastating health problems for the rest of their lives.
Their relatives have spoken of their mixture of pain and pride as the men try to save lives across Japan.
A wife of one of the men said he had sent her an email saying: "Please continue to live well, I cannot be home for a while."
Japan stepped up its bid to prevent a nuclear meltdown today - as dramatic new footage emerged showing the ferocity of the tsunami that devastated the stricken country.
Today helicopters were ordered to dump tonnes of water on the plant.
Tonight the terrifying power of the tsunami was revealed in a video showing it turn from a trickle of water running down the road - into a deadly wave in a matter of seconds.
The frightening force of the muddy tide becomes apparent as the torrents rage through the streets, sweeping away cars, people and homes.
A local reporter filmed the footage after driving in a taxi across the city, when the 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit.
The video shows them joining other running people before diving into a nearby building and panicking as the water levels rise, running for the stairs.
The true horror of what they're trying to escape from is then revealed as a black tide of water floods into the stairwell below them.
Amazingly, they notice a helpless man holding two young children clinging dangerously to the top of a pile of cars.
Using the buildings fire hose they eventually pluck him and another woman from the raging torrent below, along with several other survivors clinging to trees and vehicles.
Today as radiation continued to spread from the plant's, the UK government announced plans to evacuate all Brits directly affected by the Japanese disaster by charter plane.
And the UK and US have said their search teams will pull out of Japan completely tomorrow.
One expert warned of the catastrophic situation at the nuclear site yesterday: "This could be as bad as Chernobyl."
Most of the teams battling to contain the crisis at the quake-stricken Fukushima Daiichi plant were forced to flee the site last night as radiation levels hit 300 times the normal level.
Military helicopters were called in to dump water on the plant after being turned away yesterday due to the high radiation levels. Water cannons joined the operation later, spraying the fire well into the night.
Meanwhile, the official number of missing following the earthquake and tsunami continues to rise with the toll now standing at 14,650 — with 5,321 confirmed deaths.
There are fears the final number of lives lost may reach 25,000.
And 170 miles away in the capital Tokyo, they were ten times the normal level.
Meanwhile today it was revealed that radioactive particles are heading eastwards from Japan and are expected to reach North America within days.
But he stressed the radiation was low level and would not pose any danger to people.
This morning it was announced that any Brits affected by the disaster will be flown home to the UK free of charge on charter planes.
Flights from Tokyo to Hong Kong will be available for anyone who wants to leave the stricken country, and passengers will be able to travel back to Britain from there, the Foreign Office said.
The offer of help came hours after the Foreign Office advised Brits to get out of the city.
Earlier it warned UK citizens to stay outside a 50-mile (80km) zone around the Fukushima facility, echoing an American edict to its people.
As the world watched the unfolding disaster, some nations accused the Japanese government of trying to hide the fact they had lost their grip on the crisis.
EU officials spoke of an "apocalypse" and French government spokesman Francois Baroin said: "In the worst of cases, it could have an impact worse than Chernobyl."
The 1986 disaster at a nuclear power station in Ukraine sent a plume of radioactivity across Europe and is regarded as the worst in history.
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French Industry Minister Eric Besson said: "Let's not beat about the bush. They have lost control of the situation."
And French nuclear safety boss Thierry Charles said: "The next 48 hours will be decisive. I am pessimistic."
Victor Gilinsky, former US Nuclear Regulatory Commission member, added: "The actual radiation releases could approach that category of Chernobyl."
Dr Thomas Neff, an American-based physicist and uranium-industry analyst, agreed - describing the Fukushima crisis as a "slow-moving nightmare".
At Fukushima, made up of the Daiichi and Daimi plants, the teams attempting to cool down the overheating reactors had to pull back 500 yards yesterday as contamination levels soared.
They resorted to using police water cannons to spray the area.
Military helicopters also flew overhead to drop giant buckets of sea water on the plant.
But a heroic group of 180 workers later returned to the perilous task - saying they were "ready to die."
The groups took incredible risks as they tried to bring the crisis under control.
Wearing overalls, face masks, thick gloves and carrying breathing apparatus, they swiftly doused the area with cooling sea water.
After 15 minutes they were ordered out in an effort to minimise their risk of contamination.
One man had to be rushed to hospital after suffering nausea and exhaustion after he opened a valve to reduce a build-up of steam at the plant.
Tokyo radiation expert Keiichi Nakagawa hailed the incredible bravery of the work teams.
He said: "They are like suicide fighters in a war. I don't know any other way to describe it."
The Japanese government yesterday raised the maximum allowable exposure for nuclear workers to 250 millisieverts from 100 millisieverts. It was described as "unavoidable due to circumstances".
Readings outside the reactors had hit 600 msv by last night.
Around 180,000 of those living closest to the plant have already been evacuated.
France became the first major nation to tell its citizens to leave Japan yesterday, with Australia swift to follow.
Three of the reactors at the plant have now been damaged in explosions caused by Friday's devastating quake, while a fire has broken out at a fourth.
Government officials yesterday began to block-book charter flights to help Brits get out of Japan.
Foreign Secretary William Hague could announce an evacuation as early as today.
Another option being considered is an evacuation within Japan, hiring trains and coaches to move thousands of Brits to the safer southern areas.
The French government also asked Air France to step up flights between Tokyo and Paris, so that everybody who wants to leave can.
Meanwhile furious British rescue workers were on their way home last night, claiming the UK embassy in Tokyo failed to give them the paperwork needed to get them to the disaster zone.
International Rescue Corps staff spoke of "sheer disbelief" that their efforts had been scuppered by red tape.
They needed a letter confirming they were a UK charity before the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs would release supplies of rationed petrol.
One of the group, Willie McMartin, said: "The UK embassy in Tokyo refused to issue that letter, in spite of having talked to the Japanese embassy in London, because they said they would then become responsible for the team."
Brits fleeing Japan arrived at Heathrow yesterday saying they had escaped a living hell.
Neil Bevan, 43, said: "It's horrendous out there. I've been living there for 18 years. We're used to earthquakes, we deal with them every day, but the radiation is a different story."
US Marines last night landed in north-eastern Japan to help with the growing humanitarian crisis.
A plane landed amid a snowstorm at a heavily damaged airfield in Matsushima.
Millions of Japanese people struggled with little food, water or heat yesterday on the sixth day since the devastating quake and tsunami.
More than 452,000 people are staying in temporary shelters, many sleeping on the floor in school gymnasiums.
There were also reports of 30 children still waiting in their classroom for their parents to collect them six days after the horror four-storey wall of water swept through the coastal city of Ishinomaki.
Conditions worsened yesterday as freezing weather brought widespread snow - hampering efforts to find survivors in the quake-shattered towns.
In devastated northern Japan, workers in makeshift morgues are trying to identify nameless victims by posting lists containing descriptions of the dead and listing what they had in their pockets.
In Natori one entry read: "Female. About 50. Peanuts in left chest pocket. Large mole. Seiko watch."
Yesterday, one description caught the eye of Hideki Kano.
He stared, then said: "That's my mum" - before dashing towards the morgue.