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NANCY GRACE

Japanese Reactors Still Not Under Control

Aired March 18, 2011 - 20:00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


NANCY GRACE, HOST: Breaking news tonight. Devastation in Japan. The most massive earthquake in over 100 years triggers a tsunami that rocks Japan, and in the last 24 hours, the death toll soaring to over 17,000 dead and missing. Is the Japanese government outright lying, covering up the severity of the crisis not only to the Japanese but to America, as well? Nuclear radiation spreading after nuclear power plants designed to shut down in the event of an earthquake do not. Japanese and Americans on Japanese soil struggling to survive. The U.S. regulatory commission announces fuel rods at nuclear plant exposed, emitting extremely high levels of nuclear radiation as California`s governor declares a state of emergency.

International rescue attempts torpedoed over nuclear radiation fear, Japanese schools used as morgues, lists of the dead posted on their doors. And the tip of the iceberg emerging as civilians begin to fall ill from nuclear radiation. This is as hail, rain and a blanket of snow settles over Japan.

Bombshell tonight. Nuclear radiation hits California as the head of Tokyo`s power plant breaks down in tears, finally admitting radiation levels high enough to kill. This as passengers on a Tokyo-Chicago flight set off radiation detectors!

Homeland Security steps in. The threat level now to level 5, the same level as the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster. As the U.S. sends a fleet of buses to rescue Americans, red flags planted to mark the dead bodies. A new plan emerges to bury the reactors in sand and cement. But if they can`t cool down the reactors with tons of sea water, how will they be encased in cement? A run on iodine believed to ward off nuclear-related illnesses leaves the population without enough to save them! As panic mounts, what is next?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A deteriorating situation in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s event with wide consequences.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Shelters packed with hundreds of thousands of people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of these hard-hit areas just simply not having enough doctors, enough nurses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a big problem, the food supplies and water supplies.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Roads blocked with rubble after the massive earthquake.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the most basic supplies are not making it to these areas.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And still the fears of a nuclear meltdown spreading.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The radiation, particularly the radiation levels.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Workers scrambling to cool the damaged reactors.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They`re using helicopters and water cannons to try and cool down these reactors.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And of course, stop the flow of radiation into the air.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We called for an evacuation of American citizens who are within 50 miles of the plant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We would like to ask you to remain indoors at home or in your offices.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The classification of this nuclear disaster on a scale of one to seven, they`re calling this now a five.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sensors in Sacramento, California, have detected the presence radioactive material from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The number of dead in Japan continuing to rise.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Details are changing on an hour-to-hour basis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who really is in charge?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The quality of the information and the consistency of it is a bit troubling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The destruction simply incredible. The question...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are taking your calls. Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Bombshell tonight. The most massive earthquake in over 100 years triggers a tsunami that rocks Japan, in the last 24 hours, the death toll soaring to over 17,000 dead and missing. Nuclear radiation hits California, as the head of Tokyo`s power plant breaks down in tears, finally admitting radiation levels high enough to kill.

Straight out to Martin Savidge, joining us from Tokyo. Martin, what do you see? What are you hearing? What can you tell us?

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nancy, tonight out of the plant, there is a lot that is going on. In a number of different ways, they are trying desperately to keep the reactors cool. First and foremost, they brought in new fire trucks. These are ones designed to fight fires in high-rise buildings. They`re snorkel trucks that can pump a lot of water over a great deal of distance. They need a lot of water and they need a lot of distance, so that`s why those trucks are so important at this hour. But they can only work for short periods of time due to radiation exposure. They pull forward, do their job, pull back.

At the same time, when those breaks are done, then the other teams move in to try to hook up the electricity. They need the electricity, Nancy, because they want to get the main pumps turned back on. If they can, it would go a long way to ease things. But nobody can tell you right now if those pumps will work even when they have electricity, Nancy.

GRACE: Back to Martin Savidge, joining us from Tokyo. We are taking your calls live. Martin, you are saying that in a new attempt to cool the nuclear reactors, they brought in high-rise firefighting equipment. And to save the firefighters from nuclear exposure, they spray the water, then they pull back. How does that protect them if they`re going back and forth and back and forth?

SAVIDGE: Well, what they do is -- first of all, it limits the amount of exposure over time, and the build-up of exposure to radiation is what one of the things you concern yourself with over time. On top of that, that`s why they have seven trucks. One truck pulls forward, sprays the water, it pulls out of the way, the next one moves up. So they`ve got a rotation going here, all of it designed, one, to keep up the flow of water, but two, to reduce the exposure for the workers.

And that`s just one example. The helicopters are specially outfitted with special steel when they fly over. It`s designed to prevent the limit of people getting exposed that way. But the truth is, it may come to a point, depending on how desperate things become out there, that sacrificing lives could take priority for the greater good. That decision hasn`t been made yet, but it always lingers in the backs of minds of leaders here.

GRACE: Martin Savidge, they have now been called a modern-day kamikazes, hearkening back to the world war where Japanese soldiers and pilots would sacrifice their own life for the sake of Japan`s glory at war. Another thing I`m wondering about -- is there a new plan to possibly encase the nuclear reactors in cement and sand? If they can`t even determine if they are hitting their mark with the water -- we already know that they`ve tried to douse the reactors with over seven tons of salt water from the ocean. If they can`t do that, how could they hope to bury the reactors in sand and cement?

SAVIDGE: Well, you raise a very good point. They realize that that could be a great probability. The reason this idea`s been brought up is that`s what was done in Chernobyl. It was one of the ways to eventually bring that crisis to an end. That was a different reactor, built in a different way. Here you`ve got not just one reactor, you`ve got six of them. So that`s part of the magnitude of what you`re dealing with.

On top of that, these reactors are located aboveground. So how you pack them with mud, how you surround them with cement, at the time dealing with high levels of radiation -- it`s something that they haven`t quite figured out they could do. So right now, they don`t see that as a viable option. But quite frankly, nothing is ever off the table. It just depends on how things develop.

GRACE: Also joining us, Lennox Samuel, senior editor, "Newsweek" and The Daily Beast, joining us from Yamagata, Japan. Lennox, thank you for being with us. What can you tell us, Lennox?

LENNOX SAMUEL, "NEWSWEEK": Nancy, I`m in a part of the country to the north of the Fukushima plant which is having all these problems. And in this particular area, what we`re seeing is a stream of refugees, evacuees from that part of the country who are basically running away from that area because they`re scared about radiation, particularly as it relates to their children. And so what the government, and particularly local governments, specifically, the state governments, have been doing is setting up evacuation centers in different parts the country. And this is one area that you have a lot of these people who are flowing in by the hundreds.

I`ve been to a number of refugee centers here, and they`re basically doubling in numbers overnight, in a 24-hour period. And the local officials are very concerned about overcapacity. One man -- one administrator told me that he went from 500 one day to 1,000 people the other day and the following day. And he was concerned that they were running out of space, would run out of food, drink.

And he also complained, which has been a running refrain here, that the local governments are not getting enough assistance from the central government, the government of Prime Minister Kan.

GRACE: Right. And also, Lennox Samuel, it`s not over yet! Just as you sit down to your Skype to be with us from Yamagata, Japan, isn`t it true that you felt tremors?

SAMUEL: We just had a minor aftershock here, which -- minor is relative. I was in Tokyo recently and we had a minor -- we had an aftershock and it was 6.2, which would normally be considered a fairly significant earthquake. But in the context of 9.0, I guess it`s all relative. But...

GRACE: I agree.

SAMUEL: ... these aftershocks continue for days and weeks. And we get them here all the time. And you simply just have to get on with your life.

GRACE: Back to Martin Savidge, CNN correspondent joining us from Tokyo. Martin, that suggests to me it`s not even close to over yet, if the aftershocks are still occurring. And what I`m wondering about is what that`s going to do to those nuclear reactors. And particularly what about the Americans that are stranded there? I understand the U.S. has sent in a fleet of buses to get out, to rescue about 600 Americans. Where are they, and why are they stranded?

SAVIDGE: Well, part of the reason is that transportation has been shut down, or in some areas is difficult. Now, that`s the aftermath of having the tsunami and the earthquake. So getting around can be difficult. Lack of gasoline is a problem. The buses have been chartered specifically to get the Americans, to bring them into Tokyo or to other departure cities, where they`ve chartered aircraft to get them out of the country. Right now, it`s not mandatory, but many are choosing to leave, Nancy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I was really worried that my baby would get dehydrated. I`m relieved that finally, I could buy formula. I will prepare it right away.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Deteriorating situation in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Japan races to control the emergency at the Fukushima nuclear plant.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The classification of this nuclear disaster on a scale of 1 to 7 -- they`re calling this now a 5.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s a silent threat. You know, you just can`t see it or hear it or anything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So many people outside the evacuation zone really at risk.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Radiation affects our body.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A plume of radiation possibly traveling across the ocean.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here we are getting scared now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The workers inside these plants still trying to contain this radiation, still trying to cool down these rods.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) residents flee from the growing crisis.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don`t know. People say OK, but if we wait, we...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are taking your calls live, and we are sending them directly to Japan. Out to Jane in Illinois. Hi, Jane.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. Thank you for taking my call. I`m seeing that the radiation has reached California. Should the people there be concerned? And is there anything they can do to protect themselves?

GRACE: To Jean Casarez, on the story. Jean, we know that a flight from Tokyo to Chicago, when the passengers got off the plane, they set spontaneously set off the -- they set off the detectors.

JEAN CASAREZ, "IN SESSION": That`s right.

GRACE: And now it`s been sent to Homeland Security. We know that radiation has hit California. What can you tell us?

CASAREZ: Well, California`s been waiting for this. They said it was going to hit today, and it has. It is in Sacramento that a radiation detector went off. Now, they`re saying this is minuscule levels. The amounts is billions of degrees lower than could cause injury. The International Atomic Energy Agency is saying there is no cause for alarm. But Nancy, let`s look at the facts. It is registering some radiation from Japan.

GRACE: To Martin Savidge, joining us from Tokyo, Japan. We`ll get right back to the issue in California, specifically Sacramento. But Martin, if the radiation is now hitting California shores, I just don`t understand how the Japanese government can continue to not acknowledge what`s going on, when you`ve got the head of the Tokyo power breaking down in tears. They are now saying that this amount of radiation definitely can kill, correct?

SAVIDGE: That`s right. That was the statement that was made. He was also referring to the fact that people were asking up there in Fukushima when or if there was hope for those people up there, meaning the long-term longevity of their community. He paused and said he couldn`t give an answer to that. And it was shortly thereafter, he walked out into a hallway and actually broke down.

Today, I was having an interview with one of the corporate heads of TEPCO. That`s the power company that runs the generator out there, that runs the nuclear facility. He, too -- when I asked him, I said, Look, is the worst over? Is it past us now? He said, I can`t give you the answer to that. And then he, too, began to tear up.

And one of the things he began our interview with was by expressing his apology and the apology of his company for what is happening here. Now, you might say, Look, this was a natural disaster that triggered it all, but right now, they seriously believe that they are responsible...

GRACE: Well, Martin...

SAVIDGE: ... and they take that responsibility...

GRACE: Martin...

SAVIDGE: ... responsibility very heavily.

GRACE: We know for a fact, in 2009, they were warned that their nuclear reactors were in danger. And they did nothing! Let this be a caution to the United States. They are getting those warnings now. Japan did nothing.

Tell me what is happening there. I could ask you a million rhetorical questions, but what is happening? How are the people getting out of the danger zone, which is now, obviously, beyond 50 miles from the plant.

SAVIDGE: Well, that`s the statement that the United States has made, saying all Americans cannot, should not go anywhere near or as close beyond 50 miles. The Japanese are being told that that`s actually 12 miles to stay (ph) for them. The new American equipment that has been brought in and flying over there -- and this is stuff they use in the wars of Iraq and Afghanistan -- shows that so far, the deadliest radiation has not left that 12-mile exclusionary zone.

Now, there is other radiation that is leaving, but the heaviest, deadliest stuff has remained in there. So the Japanese feel confident they don`t have to extend their evacuation right now. But again, Nancy, all of this is subject to change, especially if the wind changes direction.

GRACE: I still don`t understand why 600 people -- 600 Americans are stranded in Japan. I want to go back to the issue that Jane in Illinois brought up. And I`m going to go out to California with Debra Mark, anchor, talk radio 790 KABC, joining us from L.A. Debra, the California governor has declared a state of emergency. What`s happening?

DEBRA MARK, 790 KABC (via telephone): Nancy, in northern California, that area took a big hit from the tsunami that happened after the earthquake in Japan. So lots of harbors and ports and boats and buildings were destroyed. Lots of people had to be evacuated. So they`re dealing with a big problem there, millions of dollars in damage all from that tsunami. So that`s why the declaration from Governor Brown, the emergency...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: You know, the scale of the loss in Japan is staggering. Thousands of people are dead or missing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The army came in, troops from Japan with rowboats and canoes. And we went along in the boat while they started to rescue people who`d been trapped for the last three days. And these people, many of them elderly, were just so grateful.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The cries of a child. And what can you say? How can you reassure, other than you hope you`re together and everybody`s OK.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I`m looking for my daughter. Our home is gone, so she wouldn`t know where to go. As other family members are safe, I only hope my daughter is alive somewhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Can you imagine being separated from your child, your home gone, your community gone, the mom in one shelter not having any idea where her daughter is?

To Lennox Samuel, senior editor of "Newsweek," The Daily Beat, also joining us from Yamagata, Japan. How is that happening? How are people getting reconnected? And Liz, as we`re talking to Lennox Samuel, please put up the information about how Americans can find out about their loved ones in Japan. Go ahead, Lennox.

SAMUEL: Nancy, basically, what (INAUDIBLE) people are communicating by Twitter, by cell phone. The communications in the country are very spotty. Even from Tokyo, getting in touch with people is difficult. You have families here who are -- or people here who have lost touch with their families and trying -- desperately trying to reconnect. So there is -- I mean, there is no baseline. It`s a very difficult situation, and it`s compounded by a lack of information, again, from the central government.

What`s going on here? This is a society that believes in order, community, even obedience. But you`re getting a fraying around those edges and people are expressing greater and greater frustration because they -- I talked to several people who don`t know where their relatives are. I talked to Americans who are upset because they`re getting one set of data from the United States government and something different from the Japanese government.

I think it`s not necessarily sinister. I don`t think it is. I think what it is, is an underestimation of the severity of the problem for some considerable time. And I think -- as you heard about today`s events, I think there`s a realization now that this thing may be getting out of hand. And in fact, the Japanese have freely started asking for help outside the boundaries of the country, which is not typical here. And I think it took them too long a time to come to that understanding that this is a bigger deal than they anticipated. And now we are talking about Three Mile Island...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: -- a deteriorating situation in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why the consequences.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Shelters packed with hundreds of thousands of people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A big problem with the food supply

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Roads blocked with rubble.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the basic supplies are not making it to the areas.

CHETRY: And still the fears of a nuclear meltdown spreading.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Workers scrambling to cool the damaged reactors.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are using helicopters and water cannons to try to cool down the reactors.

BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We called for an evacuation of American citizens who are within 50 miles of the plant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We would like to ask you to remain indoors at home or in our offices.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are taking your calls. First out to Chuck Ainsworth, response manager, Samaritan`s Purse. He is directing relief efforts to Japan. The amount of monetary aid to Japan is sorely lacking compared to what it was to Haiti. Chuck, you are working tirelessly. One of your first drops was today?

CHUCK AINSWORTH, SAMARITAN`S PURSE: Right now I`m in the operations center in North Carolina. I`m working with a team of disaster specialists. We have ten members of our team on the ground and eight more in the air on the way. We have a 747 filled with 93 tons of emergency supplies.

GRACE: What is in there?

AINSWORTH: Let me tell you what is the 747. We have 1,000 rolls of plastic which can be used for shelter. We have 14,000 hygiene hits, about 18,000 buckets, 15,000 blankets, 20,000 bars of soap, and other assorted hygiene products, the very basic supplies.

GRACE: Chuck Ainsworth, god bless you. People are flooding our e- mail and phone lines, trying to help. Everyone, Chuck Ainsworth, he is joining me out of North Carolina. Chuck, what, if anything, can we do?

AINSWORTH: I would encourage people if they want to partner with us, go to www.samaritanspurse.org. You can give financially, and that will enable us to send additional people and supplies into the areas most affected by the disaster.

GRACE: Chuck, how are you getting the supplies in there? I keep hearing about red tape.

AINSWORTH: We consider it an absolute blessing that the Japanese government has welcomed us. They have been supportive and appreciative. They have helped us jump through every challenge that we faced.

Just a few hours ago, I found out that U.S. military along with the Japan civil defense force will be ready to receive the 747. They will help us air lift and move supplies into the region that are most affected.

GRACE: We are taking your calls. Out to Margaret in Indiana.

MARGARET, ILLINOIS: Hi, Nancy. I would like to know if the radiation levels rise in Japan, does that mean they will rise in California? Should I be worried about my relatives on the west coast?

GRACE: Out David Shearer, the director of the NCRPM. What you tell us about the radiation in California?

DAVID SCHEUER, EXEC. DIR. NCRPM: I think it is important to talk about the levels martin was referring to and the way in which the doses are being controlled. Those measures are by limiting time in the area, cycling people through different shifts. I think onsite, we have issues to address in terms of radiation effects.

In California the levels are very low. At this point, I would advise our listeners to wait and seek information from their state. The state of California is capable. The state of California is very capable. I would rely on them to provide the data, but also provide guidance to citizens.

GRACE: Joining me right now is Bernie Rayno with AccuWeather.com. Everyone wants to know how the plume is traveling from Japan to California. I don`t believe anything the government is telling me, Japanese or United States.

BERNIE RAYNO, ACCUWEATHER.COM: I can tell.

GRACE: I know this much, when people get of a plane and they setoff radiation detector, we have a problem. I don`t care what they are saying.

RAYNO: I guess you are not going to care what I say on this either. When people are over there and they are getting off the plane, they can bring radiation with them, miniscule amounts. But when you are talking about the maximum amount of radiation projected in the atmosphere to get to the west coast of the United States to cause problems, you are talking about something that is just not happening right now.

The radiation has to reach levels of 20,000 to 30,000 feet in the atmosphere and it would be carried to the west coast, and even then it will be diffused similar to volcanic ash when it gets away from the source.

At this point, Nancy, we are not seeing any of long-term fires that would project that radiation that high in the atmosphere. We may have minuscule amounts along the west coast, but unless we change something to get that radiation high in the atmosphere, it just will not be a concern for the west coast of the United States. It is, however, a concern for Japan.

GRACE: OK. Bernie Rayno, just assuming I understand what you just said, if those amounts are so minuscule, why did it set off a detector, a radioactivity detector in Chicago? I`m not talking about California. I`m talking about Chicago. If it is so minuscule, why is it setting off detector? Why isn`t Homeland Security commenting on it?

RAYNO: Those detectors are programmed to detect radiation, whatever amount it is. What we are talking about is not radiation that is minuscule. We are worried about radiation that is going to cause problems and health risk. At this point there is none of that occurring at this point.

GRACE: OK. Bernie, how is it traveling -- we are talking about a plume. Let`s talk about in Japan. How is it traveling across the country, because first, the Japanese government says everybody within x-miles of the detectors, get out. They cannot get out, obviously. They are stranded. Telling them that is meaningless. That is like writing it on a piece of paper and throwing it out your car window. Now the U.S. is saying 50 miles, and that doesn`t seem to be enough either. How is it expanding, Bernie?

RAYNO: The low levels of the atmosphere it is expanding by wind flow. We have seen levels change all over the Fukushima nuclear plant. So whenever a storm system comes through or leaves, the wind direction changes. Over the last couple of days, it has been out of the west/northwest. Over the next couple of days, the wind will come from the east. That radiation will move with the wind flow.

GRACE: With me is Bernie Rayno. Also taking your calls live is senior meteorologist at Accuweather.com. As we go to break, I want to bring you a story we gave you last night. A mother, Cynthia Young, lost her son, Edward Clemmons. Today, she thanks us and Anderson Cooper. She made contact from a CNN satellite phone. He is alive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was washed away, but I hung on to a floating tree that came my way. My daughter was also swept away. I still don`t know where she is.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What have we done to deserve this powerful earthquake, this vast tsunami damage, and now the blizzards? With officials here now saying more than 4,000 people are confirmed dead, we have come to the east coast to see how far search and rescue for bodies has come.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are taking your calls. We are hearing now that there has been a run on the iodine pills which many people believe saved them from various sorts of nuclear radiation related cancers and illnesses to the point where there is none left in Japan.

It seems to getting worse and worse. Lennox Samuel, we were hoping things would get better. Now re hearing about entire villages that have not yet been approached yet and covered in snow and smelling of human decay.

LENNOX SAMUEL, CORRESPONDENT: That is correct. We have situations where a number of small villages and towns across -- closer to the coast on the northern tip of the country have still not yet been explored.

GRACE: Let`s see a map so we can picture what Lennox is telling us. He is joining u from Yamagata Japan. Go ahead, Lennox.

SAMUEL: I was saying a number of the towns remain unexplored. Authorities and rescue and recovery teams have not ventured that far successfully. The prospect -- there is a considerable prospect of finding are more dead bodies. The count is approaching 17,000 dead and missing. A lot of these towns remain at the mercy of the elements. The government authorities have not gotten that far.

GRACE: Joining us from Yamagata, Japan is Lennox Samuel via Skype.

To Margaret Haas, Japanese-American relations expert. She is joining us from New York. Margaret, when you get the head of the Tokyo power plant breaking down in tears admitting, finally, that the nuclear radiation is killing, the first time that has been admitted, that is very rare. Their culture -- you just don`t break down add cry.

MARGARET HAAS, EXPERT, JAPANESE-AMERICAN RELATIONS: Absolutely not. You don`t air out your dirty laundry in public on any level in Japan. This is truly unprecedented. You know, the Tokyo electric power, TepCo, has had a bad reputation. For him to cry is great. I sure hope they starting extremely open with all of us. Americans included. Not only the Japanese. Everyone still does need to know more. Let`s hear more detail.

GRACE: I appreciate the fact he is crying, but the reality is the pa government has been warned since 2009 that their reactors are in trouble. Now they are reaping what they sowed back in 2009 when they did not heed the warnings.

To Dr. Stan Kessler, thank you for being with us. I know everyone is saying these are minuscule amounts of radiation. You know what, if it were my twins, why would I believe anything the Japanese government is telling the U.S. government that is telling me? Why would you want your children exposed to any amount of additional radiation?

DR. STAN KESSLER: The problem seems to be if you look at the Chernobyl plant. The aftermath of the accident -- the people who died within the first few months, about 250 were the fire rescue and workers trying to bring the accident under control.

As you get further and further away from the center of where this radiation source is, in Chernobyl, you actually had explosions where chunks of radioactive graphite were thrown in the air and landing on cities.

There is a regulatory commission put up in the United Nations. They were expecting 4,000 deaths. They said they did not have those. In a report that was translated from the Russian literature in 2009, they suggested that perhaps 985,000 deaths were a result of the radioactivity over the long period.

GRACE: Out to the lines. Donna in Maine.

DONNA, MAINE: Hi, Nancy. Thank you for taking my call. My question is the radiation plume traveling in the air. Does that dissipate in the air or does that fall to the earth where it is concentrated in the water and soil?

GRACE: Good question, Donna in Maine. Let`s go to Bernie Rayno. Bernie, I don`t understand how the plume of radiation will just disappear. I know it goes across the ocean and it is impacted by wind currents and seawater that springs up in the air. Does it totally disburse?

RAYNO: I think it does disburse. It becomes more diffuse. We are concerned about the heavy concentration of the radiation. As you get farther and farther away from the source, it becomes more diffuse. The radiation is a huge problem locally in and around Japan.

GRACE: I don`t see you packing your bags for a California vacation.

RAYNO: If you give me the plane ticket and the money, I will be out there tomorrow.

GRACE: We`ll see about that.

Now out to Paula Bloom. We had on a lady who was desperately looking for her son, Cynthia Young. Her son was teaching over in Japan. She discovered he was missing. Since last night, between our show and Anderson, he was found by a CNN staffer. He got hooked up to him m via a satellite phone. To everyone, she thanks you. What about the others that cannot find their loved ones?

PAULA BLOOM, CORRESPONDENT: It is one of those things. We are talking about the psychological things. You have to think about your basic needs, safety. There are people who are not eating. They don`t have a place to live. It is very important to start off with your basic safety needs. The other thing re is that we all feel powerless. So being able to do something is really important.

GRACE: Being able to do something. Everyone, we are taking your calls live, but as we go break tonight, CNN Heroes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As thousands flee northern Japan, there are tens of thousands left behind. They need food, they need water, they need shelter. That is why CNN Hero Tom Henderson and his shelter box team were going in.

TOM HENDERSON, CNN HERO: We were on the ground within 24 hours. They are finding is exactly what you`ve seen. It`s just horrific.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Since 2001 Tom`s organization Shelter Box has delivered more than 100,000 boxes of life saving aid to victims of disaster all over the world.

HENDERSON: Every disaster is unusual, this particularly so because of the nuclear problem is unfolding. The clean water is becoming a problem well as food, very shortly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Each shelter box contains items critical to survival aft a disaster.

HENDERSON: We have 400 to 600 on the ground already the. We committed up to 5,000 boxes if they`re required.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just as it was last year in Haiti, Tom Henderson`s shelter box is again on the front lines, ready to assist in recovery efforts and provide much needed aid to a country in crisis.

HENDERSON: It`s very simple, is that need, that desperate need to help people as quickly as we can.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRACE: What a week in America`s courtrooms and across the world. Take a look at the stories, and more important, the people who touched our lives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The images are tough to watch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my god, the building`s going to fall.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The stories are even harder to hear.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was the town of Sandiku.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Residential area called Futaki has little left.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A nuclear bomb cannot more damage than has already been done by the tsunami.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every time I lie down to go to sleep or rest there`s a big aftershock.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Homes and buildings shredded.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pandemonium broke out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was an absolute horrific event.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His home swept away and crushed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I tried to flee in that direction behind us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were immersed in water up to our necks.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was washed away.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I could hear a voice from behind me saying hurry up, hurry up.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He did not have enough time to look for his wife.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are still many bodies under this rubble.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s hard to believe almost everything`s been washed away. Memories of life before the wave litter the ground.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s the situation in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Happening right now in real time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The radiation leaking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If radiation levels go up --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Highly radioactive material.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Things are worse than I`m being told.

GRACE: I don`t believe that the government is telling the truth. I think there are more dead than 13,000.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Let`s stop and remember Marine Lance Corporal Brandon Dewey, 20, Tracy, California, killed Iraq. Awarded the Purple Heart, Navy and Marine Corps medal, loved karate, writing books, inventing games. Favorite movies the "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" series, dreamed of becoming a cop. He leaves behind parents Mark and Julia, stepfather Scott, brothers Jason and baby Aden he never got to meet. His sister Elise is serving in the Navy, deploying today for Afghanistan. Brandon Dewey, American hero.

Thanks to our guests but especially to you for being with us. Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp eastern. And until then, goodnight friend.

END