HOW FUKUSHIMA'S FUEL RODS MELTED & SHATTERED

Arnie Gunderson of Fairewinds Associates in Burlington does a demonstration.

UPDATED - The Japanese Earthquake & Tsunami

UPDATE @ 10:59 a.m.:

Maggie Gunderson on Green Mountain Daily: The Fukushima nuclear plant lost containment integrity and is leaking radiation.

ORIGINAL POST:

Richard Estes/American Leftist yesterday had commentary and news links on the quake and aftermath, but also added a rather telling (ironic) comment at the bottom of his post,

On a more mundane note, the New York Times can't resist exploiting the situation as an opportunity to cast the US military presence in Japan, disliked by many people there, in a favorable light. The US military is, after all, first and foremost, a humanitarian institution.

A RESPONSE TO TODAY'S DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE IN JAPAN

Tonight we heard Marketplace's litany, "Let's do the numbers": "The earthquake didn't rattle the investors." That's a relief for NPR/VPR's listeners.

PRAY FOR NEW ZEALAND

At least sixty-five people have been killed in a 6.3 magnitude earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is the second earthquake to have hit this city in the last five months. The Guardian has live updates.

The Cathedral (photo above, from its website) has lost its tower.

Above photograph of the toppled spire: Mark Mitchell/AP. The Cathedral is one of many buildings that have  collapsed.

Over and Under in Europe

From Radio Netherlands, How to weave round a volcanic cloud:

Europe's airspace has been divided in to three zones: a no-go zone, a safe zone and a zone where extra caution is required. The borders between the zones are continually monitored and, if necessary, adjusted by Eurocontrol, the European flight control authority.

In any case, passenger planes will now be taking off with a cloud of volcanic ash still hanging above Europe. Special security measures and procedures have been introduced. The chairman of the Dutch Civil Pilots Association, Evert van Zwol, explains how you go about flying with ash in the air.

"Partly matter of sight. You have to realise that there is, thankfully, only a relatively small amount of ash in our vicinity. It is concentrated in layers which you can see quite easily. There are areas where there is a kind of grey veil and other areas which are much clearer."

Rollercoaster
That means it's a question of evasion: flying around or over or under the ash. And because you can normally spot a ribbon or a layer in the air well in advance, the passengers needn't be subjected to a roller coaster ride. There is time to take gentle evasive action.

"So you start to turn the aircraft. There's a great deal of 'banking' involved in take-off procedures any way. When you're taking off in a westward direction, but actually heading east, you'll need to negotiate a number of turns. In that sense, there's no real difference."

Haiti Earthquake: Cathédrale Sainte Trinité (Holy Trinity Cathedral) in Port-au-Prince

Wikipedia:

The Episcopal Diocese of Haiti (French: Eglise Episcopale d'Haïti) is the Anglican Communion diocese consisting of the entire territory of Haiti. It is part of Province 2 of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Its cathedral, Holy Trinity (French: Cathédrale Sainte Trinité) located in the corner of Ave. Mgr. Guilloux & Rue Pavée in downtown Port-au-Prince, has been destroyed six times, including in the 2010 Haitian earthquake.

It is the largest diocese in the Episcopal Church, with 83,698 members...

Episcopal Life Online:

"Please tell our partners, the people of the Episcopal Church, the people of the United States and indeed the people of the world that we in Haiti are immensely grateful for their prayers, their support and their generosity," [diocesan bishop Jean Zaché] Duracin wrote. "This is a desperate time in Haiti; we have lost so much. But we still have the most important asset, the people of God, and we are working continuously to take care of them."

The Haitian diocese suffered greatly with the quake. A number of the diocese's 254 schools, ranging from preschools to a university and a seminary, were destroyed or heavily damaged, including the Holy Trinity complex of primary, music and trade schools adjacent to the demolished diocesan Cathédrale Sainte Trinité (Holy Trinity Cathedral) in Port-au-Prince.

A portion of the St. Vincent School for Handicapped Children, also in the Haitian capital, collapsed, killing between six and 10 students and staff. Many of the students are living at the camp while arrangements are being made for them to be housed elsewhere.

More than 100 of the diocese's churches have been damaged or destroyed, Duracin has said.

As many as 3,000 quake survivors, including many members of the diocese, have congregated on a rocky field next to College Ste. Pierre, a diocesan secondary school that the quake destroyed. Duracin, who was left homeless by the quake, has led the effort to organize and maintain the camp, where conditions are described as grim.

Contrasting stories from Haiti

NRC/international - "Parts of the capital of Port-au-Prince have descended into complete anarchy."

Dr. Evan Lyon of PIH - "no UN. no police. no US marines and no violence or chaos or anything. just people helping each other."

Photos

Rather than relying on print media or radio/television reporting of the horror and chaos in Haiti, I find the still photos give us an intimate, better point of view. Here are two series...

Troy Livesay's flickr photostream

Boston Globe photos

Not for the faint-hearted.

Diocese of Haiti

Dear Friends in Christ:

We have devastating news to share with you from Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake yesterday. According to reports I have received here in Les Cayes, the damage in Port au Prince and areas around it is terrible.

There is no Cathedral. The entire Holy Trinity complex is gone. The convent for the Sisters of St. Margaret is gone. The Bishop's house is gone. College St. Pierre is gone. The apartment for College St. Pierre is still standing. Bishop no longer has a house in which to live.

In Trouin, four people were killed during a service.

In Grand Colline, the church is gone.one part of st Martin of tours is gone.

In St. Etienne Buteau the church, the rectory and the school are gone.

In Les Cayes, BTI is OK, but some people were injured trying to get out of the buildings during the quake. The rectory in Les Cayes is in very bad condition.

The Rev. Kesner Ajax
Executive Director, Bishop Tharp Institute (BTI)
8 Rue du Quai, Cayes
Tel. Office: 011-509-2286-4676
011-509-2286-4677
Mobile: 011-509-3445-3346
011-509-3724-8376
Mailing address:
100 Airport Ave
Venice Fl. 34285
Or
Partnership Program Coordinator
Episcopal Diocese of Haiti
C/o Lynx Air
P.O. Box 407139
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33340

Episcopal Relief & Development Responds to Devastating Earthquake in Haiti

For Immediate Release


DATE : 1/13/2010



Episcopal Relief & Development Responds to Devastating Earthquake in
Haiti



Shortly before sundown on Tuesday, January 12, a 7.0-magnitude
earthquake hit Haiti. The quake was centered about ten miles west of
Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince. At least 28 aftershocks of magnitude
4.0 or greater shook the country in the hours immediately following the
quake.



Episcopal Relief & Development has reached out to its Haitian partners
in an effort to determine the extent of the damage and coordinate a
swift response.



"The agency has already disbursed emergency funding to the Diocese of
Haiti to help them meet immediate needs such as providing shelter, food
and water, and stands ready to support their ongoing recovery as they
rebuild their ministries," said Rob Radtke, President of Episcopal
Relief & Development. "As communication improves and recovery plans
develop, Episcopal Relief & Development will continue to provide
updates."



Interim Director for International Programs Kirsten Muth commented, "We
are committed to a long-term response and recovery effort with our
partners in the Diocese of Haiti. It is one of the largest and perhaps
most socially engaged dioceses of the Episcopal Church with an extensive
network of schools and health services."



"In addition to other programming, the agency has supported the Diocesan
Development Program for many years through a central Development Office
and network of 28 development agents, all of whom have received training
in disaster response and management," Muth continued. "We know that in
the wake of this disaster, these community agents will use this training
to coordinate their efforts with local authorities."



While the full extent of the damage has yet to be determined,
preliminary reports show that Port-au-Prince has suffered severely.
Recent estimates indicate that at least three million people have been
affected by the earthquake. In addition to the destruction of
innumerable homes, many major structures have been reduced to rubble
including the presidential palace, the UN peacekeeper compound and the
nation's Diocesan headquarters.



"Even under 'normal' circumstances, Haiti struggles to care for her 9
million people. The nation is the poorest in the western hemisphere,
and this latest disaster will set back many recent efforts at
development," said Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori in a
statement Wednesday morning. "I urge your concrete and immediate
prayers in the form of contributions to Episcopal Relief & Development,
who are already working with the Diocese of Haiti to send aid where it
is most needed."



To donate to the Haiti Fund, visit www.er-d.org
or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to Episcopal
Relief & Development, PO Box 7058, Merrifield, VA 22116-7058. Please
put "Haiti Fund" in the memo line of all checks. In addition, Episcopal
Relief & Development is preparing a bulletin insert, which will be
available on its website.



Episcopal Relief & Development is the international relief and
development agency of the Episcopal Church of the United States and an
independent 501(c)(3) organization. The agency takes its mandate from
Jesus' words found in Matthew 25. Its programs work towards achieving
the Millennium Development Goals. Together with the worldwide Church and
ecumenical partners, Episcopal Relief & Development strengthens
communities today to meet tomorrow's challenges. We rebuild after
disasters and empower people by offering lasting solutions that fight
poverty, hunger and disease, including HIV/AIDS and malaria.



Contact: Tyla Fowler

(800) 334-7626, ext. 6311





Brian Sellers-Petersen

Director of Church Engagement

Episcopal Relief & Development

206-390-0750

bpetersen@er-d.org

www.er-d.org