earthquake & tsunami

[lukkucairi]

Originally Posted by brightpearl

Really, *really* bad.

I know, brightpearl, it sucks.

My husband spent some time in Japan a few years ago - luckily all his friends there appear to be OK. He is as appalled as everyone else about what's happening there, but he did point out that of all the nations on the planet, the Japanese are probably best equipped to deal with this kind of catastrophe. Without the earthquake and tsunami drills they've been doing for decades, possibly thousands more would have died.

[Stephi_B]

it's

and while the japanese struggle with this, the german media hysteria had it's first meltdown already on saturday i heard they ran out of iodine tablets here in berlin this afternoon - totally nutty, right out of their minds because our media has gone nuclear and my since lately ex-favourite online newsportal spiegel.de has japan now on #2 as they are featuring the HUUUUUUGE national politics fight on the back of the japanese catastrophe (there are three state elections the next days and "turning off our nuclear plants" is the shady election hype, i mean that's the thing to do, but just NOW there are really other problems, our politicians better stop wasting their breath and ask japan where they can assist, goddammit) instead.
all the other problems: quakes, tsunamis, volcano were just footnotes of the news coverage here. it's all about radioactivity and meltdowns - since DAYS

i've now resorted on british, american, australian and arabian (even on al-jazeera japan has meanwhile replaced libya, bahrain etc as #1 news) news channels... --> don'cha read german news, you may catch a serious radioactive contamination just from reading the headlines

so sad

[xfox]

Thank you for starting this one, Frieda. The tragic loss is unimaginable and difficult to watch, making the reality of the scenes difficult, heart wrenching. As a viewer of this apocalypse I share your desire to bring comfort and hope to those in Japan.

[Brynn]

Very relieved to hear you're okay, Coffee!
My folks in Capitola got their boat banged up but it's still seaworthy and it's just $$$, afterall.

One of my students has a husband and a daughter over there and she's very worried about the reactor situation. She's told that there are actually five of them that are in trouble.

[brightpearl]

I just heard from my friend that he's very, very busy helping at a military hospital. I feel almost like he is there on my behalf, and it helps a little.

I see that a baby was found alive in the rubble today, but of course there are toys and favorite books and teacups sticking out of all that mud as well. It's hard to take.

Then there's the whole nuclear thing.
*sheesh*
Y'all keep an eye on the news over on the west coast.

[Coffee]

Originally Posted by lukkucairi

I know, brightpearl, it sucks.

Nominated for "ZeBoard Understatement of the Year" award.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquak.../2011_data.php

Just wondering why anyone would build a nuclear plant near any of the dots on that map ^ ... "what could possibly go wrong?"
(yes, i am looking at the dots in California too ).

[MoJoRiSin]

delete all mo's earlier posts for the day
they do not relate in any way to this
(grave) one ::

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12755739

[Brynn]

Here's some of the hype we're getting here in Oregon. It worth noting that it's put out by a radiation detection device manufacturer and now there is no iodine to be found within city limits.

[Stephi_B]

but at least you are really somewhere n e a r japan, i mean it's still farther away than we (eastern bavaria, quite heavily contaminated back then, it's still forbidden to eat wild animals, fungi and berries from the woods; i was 6 y/o and still can vividly remember the ban to play outside, especially when it rained and the total ban to play in the sandbox and how my grandpa threw away our garden's harvest that year and removed the top layer of earth from the beddings) used be from chernobyl.

but here we expect something ridicule like max. 3 rem extra radiation and still all iodine tablets and geiger counters (i googled, these thingies cost like 300-400€) are sold out. i heard from a woman on my thyroid forum (these folks have gone nuclear anyways, most of them are whackos under normal circumstances) who works for a firm who can arrange for help package transport and they had to get (probably europe's last) iodine tablets from france and belgium --> totally crazy!
and now the food hype (fish, sushi, soy sauce, instant noodles, tea...) sets off. oh my goodness

buy japanese & give money to the red cross (the japanese embassy here recommends that, it gives sense as the regional japanese red cross org is big and well connected with the other regional red cross and red crescent orgs)

... the rest is helplessness