UN atomic chief sees more core damage in Japan

Tokyo could soon be threatened by the radiation plume from Japan’s damaged nuclear power plant, according to a US scientists’ organisation.

The Union of Concerned Scientists says a crack in the containment vessel could allow radiation to exit and travel hundreds of kilometres.

In his daily briefing, the head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog, failed to comment on the claims but he did appear less optmistic than yesterday.

Yukiya Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told a news conference that there was a “possibility of core damage” at unit 2. “The damage is estimated to be less than 5 pct.”

He also said recent developments in Japan’s nuclear crisis were “worrying” but he still believed the situation was different from that of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Still, he wanted more timely, detailed information about Japan’s events.

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