Re: Iodine tablets

["J. J. Rozental" <josrozen@netmedia.net.il>]

At 01:51 PM 10/18/99 -0500, you wrote:
>
>
>Regarding the question of whether KI should have been distributed to the
>local population after the Japanese criticality, it would seem to me that
>the answer would be no.  KI would be appropriate in a situation involving a
>large inventory of radioactive iodine (unlikely in a criticality accident
>not involving a reactor), where there was a pathway to the environment
>(unclear to me in the  Japanese accident), and where KI was already
>distributed to the local population

>+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>David R. Simpson, Ph.D. CHP
>University of Nebraska - Lincoln
>dsimpson1@unl.edu
>+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>

It was attributed  the level 4 in  the  nuclear fuel fabrication plant in
Tokaimura, Japan. According with the potential hazards for of off-site
risks, as specified in the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) (*).This
means: 

Class 4 - Accident without significant off-site risks  (fig 2, page 4) 
External release of radioactivity resulting in a dose to the most exposed
individual off-site of the order of a few millisieverts. With such a release
the need for off-site protective actions would be generally unlikely except
possibly for local food control.

According with the  IAEA press release of  1 October, the immediate area
within 350 meters  of the facility was evacuated  and residents  were
ordered to stay indoors within 10 km of the facility.  

This agrees perfectly with your statement.


J. J. Rozental
josrozen@netmedia.net.il
Israel                         

(*) INES: The International Nuclear Event Scale -- User's Manual, 
IAEA -INES-92/01, 1992
jjrozental

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