Radiation in Tokyo ten times the normal level
Live feed of main Japanese Television Network (NHK) in English
Update: Fukushima powerplant releases radiation in the atmosphere. Spent fuel rods could be exposed to air and catch on fire.
MSNBC reports that the situation in Tokyo becomes more serious as the winds started bringing some low, yet elevated for normal conditions, radiation to the Japanese capital.
The spike came after a third explosion in four days rocked the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi plant earlier Tuesday.
Several embassies advised staff and citizens to leave affected areas, tourists cut short vacations and multinational companies either urged staff to leave or said they were considering plans to move outside Tokyo.
Japan told the International Atomic Energy Agency that a spent fuel storage pond caught fire at a reactor and radioactivity had been “released directly into the atmosphere.” The blaze was later extinguished and the U.N. nuclear watchdog later said radioactivity levels near the nuclear site fell during a six-hour period on Tuesday.
