Yawn!

Completely irresponsible for the BC government to deliberately take away our choice to protect ourselves in the event we need to. Just because someone buys potassium iodine doesn't mean they will take it... its a precautionary thing to have around is all.

Look up Troy Michigan incident for proof it may be needed. The radioactive vapors or particles can get up into the upper atmosphere and then get deposited all at once in a single low pressure rain storm. In Troy they had mass radiological sickness from a nuclear test in Nevada 3-days earlier nearly 2000 miles away when it all came down in one location due to a rain storm.

Easily with the reactor workers now pulled out due to the fact they can't work anymore in the high radiation environment of the reactor area... this reactor is guaranteed to melt down without any workers on site anymore able to continue trying to cool the reactors... this is a category 7 melt down scenario now... this will see explosions that will put radioactive vapors in the jet stream... if we have a low over BC, then yes we are at a very real risk of localized concentrated contamination coming in with the rain.

When localized concentrated contamination does happen our government has failed us by allowing us all to believe the line from Tokyo that all is safe and thus not doing their duty as government to ensure we have sufficient supply online for EVERYONE to have a dose... IF REQUIRED. Completely irresponsibility on the part of our naive government... it makes me furious that my pharmacy says they have orders from the provincial government not to sell us this safety option... when the localized contamination does happen its going to be too late... apologize for their incompetence will mean nothing then....

From 1945 to 1998 there were 2053 nuclear bombs dropped and tested around the world. This does not include the two alleged to have been tested by North Korea because they have not been verified

The majority of these bombs were dropped or detonated by USA and Russia, but also by England, France, Pakistan, China, etc;

How much iodine did we take during this period?????

Dr. Ira Helfand, a Massachusetts-based nuclear safety expert and past-president of Physicians for Social Responsibility, told CBS News that if fuel at one of the four crippled reactors in Japan were to melt down and break through the containment vessel, it could cause a massive explosion as superheated fuel mixed with the water coolant.

"The fuel rods contain enormous amounts of radioactive material -- each reactor can release more radiation than 1,000 Hiroshima-sized bombs," Helfand told the network.

Palopu, the nuclear test bombs were all either underground, or air bursts. An air burst bomb takes all the radiation with the heat and sends most of it back into space... thus why a dirty bomb is worse than an actual air blast nuke. An air blast nuke you are safe to walk in the open in as little as ten seconds after the flash blast... after the initial blast almost all residual radiation is gone... prior to nuclear conventions signed in the 60's nukes were planned to be used on the battle field with cannon nukes to wipe out troops and equipment 15 miles ahead and then proceed, and do it again (the only way it was thought to fight the Soviets superiority in numbers)... they figured this would too easily excalate into full blown nuclear war though, so all sides agreed to ban that type of warfare... not because it wasn't possible, as it was due to the radiation going up with the mushroom cloud. They say a ground explosion is the worst kind as it contaminates the ground for thousands of year... had the Japanese bombs been ground blasts Hiroshima and Nagasaki would not be livable to this day.

With the last 50 nuclear plant employees pulled off the fire tonight we have no line of defense to stop the reactor number four from exploding. Like I said before once you have a small leak its only a matter of time... the small leaks keeps personnel from fighting the fires (reactor number four has no containment vessel similar to Chernobyl)... at best they could drag it out for a year if they could keep enough employees alive for that long with constant radiation releases... now that they have pulled the plug one reactor will go and then eventually they all will (hopefully they think I bet while the weather is going west to the Pacific all in one big event, rather then risking Tokyo with a thousand cuts over many years when the wind turns south). That is 6 reactors at 6000 times the radiation release as Hiroshima... furthermore its a ground blast that will contaminate the land and not all go up with the plum.

6000 times Hiroshima is enough radiation to concentrate in the jet stream and collect for concentrated contamination from a weather low, which is exactly what we have in this part of the world in this time of the year... the very real threat we face.

Look up Troy Michigan nuclear incident... that was 1/6000th the radiation of this impending melt down and it radiation poisoned a whole town 2000 miles away... leaving all surrounding communities unaffected. It all depends on the weather lows where it will rain down the concentrated radioactive vapors and particles. The myth that it will simply disperse is wishful thinking.

Expect Shirley Bond to create another mess in her public safety portfolio and let's pray that things improve in Japan this week and we don't see more catastrophic full meltdowns there. I am surprised by lack of action to evacuate more of the surrounding regions by Japanese officials.

Apart from politics, there should be a good reason for Clark surrounding herself with these incompetent individuals and not bringing new faces, or use more competent individuals in her team. She has taken a self defeating move.

This group could get it together and win the next election.When Campbell was in charge he had no problem firing you if you were not a close buddy.However,when it came to Wally Oppal,Kash Heed,Colin Hansen,etc.,he wasn't that quick to drop the hammer,unless they resigned themselves.With Christy Clark,I don't think there is that same type of relationship with anyone in her Cabinet,so I don't think she will have a problem handing out whatever form of punishment for stepping out of line!Any man knows,women can be really mean and vengeful when they need to be.

Univ ... why would you be surprised that they are evacuating only to a 20 km radius and having those to 30km radisu stay indoors and be ready to evacuate?

Do you have any expertise in this area? Have you been watching Japanese TV on the incident? What radius should be evacuated in your opinion and on what scientific information do yoou have.

Every 2 seconds the wind direction and radiation levels are monitored. The have 18 hours of date that they compare. They high peaks they are getting from some of the 50 or so stations are about 100 times higher than the norm (that is a spike as shown on TV as I am writing this and has subsided considerably) measured over years. That level is still half that of the exposure when a person gets a chest x-ray.

Your turn.....

BTW, is Shirley responsible for public safety in Japan?

“I am very much looking forward to this role.”

Sounds like she just got handed the lead in a stage production.
Come to think of it, she just did.

Makes you think; will she get the award for best actress, for her portrayal of a person who knows what she is doing?

To me, the constant shuffling that goes on with these ministers is proof that none of them really has a grip on reality.
metalman.

Being a politician is one of the few jobs where you can be appointed a ministry and have absolutely no backgroung,experience,or training.Should make people cringe if they really thought about it.Could you imagine in a hospital setting,well today we're going to have Jill(the janitor)do brain surgery,John(the patient in detox)is going to hand out meds today,and Dr.Smith you're going to clean the toilets.Sometimes they get it right,such as Pat Bell as Forest Minister.

Winnipeg just lowered the amount of flouride in their drinking water because they think it is safer...how about we do the same here??? We are almost the only city who hasen't done it yet...what's the hold up???