Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Japan Finds Spinach, Milk Contaminated with Radiation

   Steve Herman  March 19, 2011
   Children  evacuees  from  Futaba,  a  town  near  the tsunami-crippled
   Fukushima  Dai-ichi  nuclear  plant in Fukushima Prefecture, arrive at
   their  new  evacuation shelter at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, near
   Tokyo, March 19, 2011

Photo: AP

   Children  evacuees  from  Futaba,  a  town  near  the tsunami-crippled
   Fukushima  Dai-ichi  nuclear  plant in Fukushima Prefecture, arrive at
   their  new  evacuation shelter at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, near
   Tokyo, March 19, 2011

   Japan's  top spokesman said Saturday that elevated levels of radiation
   have  been  found  in milk and spinach near the crippled nuclear power
   plant in Fukushima prefecture.
   Chief  Cabinet  Secretary  Yukio  Edano  told  a  news conference that
   although  radiation  levels  exceeded government safety standards, the
   tested  food does not pose an immediate health risk.  It is the first
   time radiation has been detected in food since the March 11 earthquake
   and tsunami unleashed the nuclear crisis.
   Meanwhile, the Tokyo Fire Department resumed spraying water on reactor
   number  3  Saturday afternoon, after suspending operations long enough
   for technicians to attach a power cable to the tsunami-hit plant in an
   attempt to get water pumps going to cool down overheated fuel rods.
   Officials  say  it  may take until Sunday for the electricity to start
   flowing to the damaged reactors.
   Japan's  self-defense  forces began using powerful hoses Friday to try
   to  spray  the  buildings, after abandoning a mission to drop water by
   helicopter.   Authorities  were  concerned  about  the radiation risk
   posed to the pilots.  Japanese media report helicopters will fly over
   the plant again Saturday to measure radiation levels.
   The  Japanese  government  raised  the severity rating of the disaster
   from  4 to 5 on the 7-point international nuclear event scale.  Level
   5  signals an accident with wider consequences, including some release
   of radioactive material, with a high probability of significant public
   exposure.
   The International Atomic Energy Agency described the situation as very
   serious,  but said Friday there has not been any significant worsening
   in  the  past  day.   It  also said the radiation levels in Tokyo and
   other  cities  outside  the  immediate  vicinity  of the nuclear plant
   remain far from levels dangerous to human health.
   The head of the IAEA, Yukiya Amano, met with Japanese officials Friday
   to  assess the situation and to offer the IAEA's help.  He also urged
   them  to  release  more  detailed  and  timely  information  about the
   situation.   Amano  will  give  his assessment of the Japanese crisis
   Monday  at  an emergency meeting of the U.N. nuclear agency's board of
   governors.
   The  risk  of radiation poisoning has already forced the evacuation of
   more  than  200,000  people  who  lived  within  20  kilometers of the
   reactors.   Many  are  in  makeshift  shelters, with inadequate food,
   water and other supplies, in frigid winter weather.
   Problems  have  been  reported  at  all  six of the Fukushima Dai-Ichi
   plant's   reactors.    Emergency  efforts  have  focused  mostly  on
   restoring  water  to  a  pool  holding spent fuel rods at the number 3
   unit.  Water in the pool is believed to have boiled away, raising the
   risk  of  serious  radioactive  leaks.   A  similar  problem has been
   reported at unit 4.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

.