Without a doubt the magnitude 9.0 earthquake that hit Japan last Thursday evening has been and will continue to be catastrophic to the people of Japan. The task at hand looks overwhelming to those of us who are on the outside looking in. We all want to help them in some way, but feel helpless to do so from our comfortable homes far away. Might I suggest that you contact your local disaster Center and ask them what is needed to help the people of Japan. The Salvation Army has many branches worldwide and is an excellent resource to give money or extra household items to, if they are needed.
Now I’d like to change the subject and share with you an article I have found to be informative with regards to the possible failure of the nuclear reactor(s) at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. There is a lot of fear being peddled out there and I for one have learned not to go ballistic from the get go. The proponents of solar and wind energy sources are ramping up their calls to shut down all nuclear facility development before the whole story can be told. When the story is finally told, whether there is a total melt down or not, the most important piece of information that must be remembered is that it was the earthquake that caused the tsunami and it was the tsunami that has caused the greatest damage and potentially will be the cause for any failure(s) at this facility.
For those of you who want to improve your understanding of nuclear energy and what you should and should not fear about its production and use, please read one of these books by Dr. Richard Mueller of U.C. Berkley; “Physics for Future Presidents” or “Physics and Technology for Future Presidents”. These publications have been specifically written for the lay consumer to read. There are two versions in print, the college level text edition(s), for those who want ‘all’ the details, and the version for those who merely want a deeper (not university level) understanding of physics. Dr. Mueller has published a powerful resource for the public to understand all energy resources, their prospects, dangers, futility, advantages and what there is and is not to fear from each of them.
This web article from the BBC has a lot of good information for you. The article goes over what’s happened, what could happen and gives some good diagrams to help communicate the problem.
Please enjoy the article and I trust it will give you a better understanding of what’s happening at the Fukushima Daiichi reactor(s).
Yours In Truth 
Shelly
13 March 2011 Last updated at 11:07 ET
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Japan crisis 'worst since WWII'
By Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News
A large explosion was seen at the plant with debris blown out from the building
Continue reading the main story
Japanese Earthquake
Two days after the alarm was first raised about safety at Fukushima Daiichi plant, uncertainty still surrounds the situation on the ground and the status of the three reactors that were functioning at the time of Friday's earthquake and tsunami.
It appears that a partial meltdown did occur in reactor 1.
On Sunday, officials said the same thing was suspected in reactor 3 - although later, they appeared to retract this statement.
What is certain is that engineers are still struggling to pump enough water past the reactors to keep the cores cool.
At noon local time (0400 GMT), Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), which operates the plant, gave this status report:
Reactor 1 - shut down, under inspection because of Saturday's explosion, sea water and boric acid being pumped in
Reactor 2 - water level "lower than normal", but stable
Reactor 3 - high pressure coolant injection was "interrupted"; but injection of sea water and boric acid were under way.
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