ihatelies said:
They probably won't release the records for many years, but I to look at people's actions in these situations, which tell the story:
Here's what they did immediately following.
1. The USS Ronald Reagan diverted a major disaster recovery mission and steamed the other direction for several hours. They announced they had received a "minor exposure" to radiation, however an aircraft carrier battle group almost never diverts a mission. They scrubbed the entire ship and still some "hot spots" remained. Read the article posted above.
2. In the next two days, the United States took an unusually almost confrontational position with the government of Japan. They imposed a larger evacuation zone for US personnel, and strongly urged the Japanese government to expand theirs.
3. The US military began moving families out of Japan to Korea.
4. The USS George Washington left a port south of Tokyo while it was still under repair, and all navy and family members were issued iodine pills.
I think that's a pretty skewed and deceptive narrative. The reality -- as closely followed by those of us who live here and are involved to various degrees with the US base at Yokosuka-- was much more nuanced. I apologize for not having all the supporting evidence at hand right now however. Midnight here in Yokohama...
1. The Reagan got some radiation, but not to a degree worrisome to health. But it was enough to posssibly skew readings on sensitive equipment for detecting nuclear activity in the region, specifically North Korea. So they got outta there. Of course I'm not surprised that crew members said they'd never experienced real radiation before. Most of them weren't born when Chernobyl blew, much less TMI. One important point is that the "Nukes" at Yokosuka -- the nuclear service guys -- never broke a sweat during the whole ordeal. They were not worried about health issues. Equipment calibration, yes.
2.Yes, the US implemented a wider recommendation zone. At the time they made it clear that this was through "an abundance of caution." All sorts of people, from US journalists to NGO's to people driving trucks full of food and clothing, remained active within the 50 mile zone and closer, and we have yet to hear of suspected health threats incurred by them. US military and DOE readings showed that increased radiation levels extended to the NW beyond the Japanese evacuation zone, and that seems to be the reason for the call, and high radiation readings in several villages outside the Japanese 30k perimenter subsequently vindicated the caution but still have not demonstrated threats to health (exceeded warning levels, yes, but that's not the same as threat to health). Keep in mind that other governments -- German, French -- were advising their nationals to evacuate Tokyo and leave the country if possible. The US and UK responses were much more measured and ultimately have proven more sound in my opinion. (just my opinion, OK?)
3. The movement of US dependent families was a VOLUNTARY EVACUTION! The US Govt didn't move anyone who didn't ask to be moved. The brass seem to have regretted issuing the order immediately. There was never any radiation at US bases that appoached the level of threat to health. There were tons of rumors however. Good article from Stars and Stripes from April 2:
http://www.stripes.com/news/rumors-fueled-fear-for-days-after-earthquake-in-japan-1.139835
Basically, voluntary evacuation was approved because family members were demanding it. People were deluged with emails and phone calls from people back home who were watching the most preposterously alarmist stateside news about the disaster and insisting they evacuate. So the military agreed to let them go, gave everyone who wanted it a round trip ticket and a per diem, and allowed them to come back in mid April, a month ago. With that deal I would have gone to visit relatives myself.:
http://www.stripes.com/news/dod-lif...ut-some-plans-for-families-to-return-1.141240
4. As for KI pills, again it was for people who wanted it. There was never a recommendation that people take it. Distribution stopped in mid April :
http://www.stripes.com/news/pacific...ng-iodide-pills-to-citizens-in-japan-1.141349
To summarize, I think the US military and US Embassy actions reflected a fine balance between actual threat to health and operational efficiency (never very high beyond the immediate vicinity of the reactors) and perceived danger on the part of US nationals (many people freaking), especially in light of much greater freakouts on the part of other governments. And FWIW, while many Embassies --again Germany stands out -- issued mandatory evacuation orders for dependents and inessential staff, many of them moving the embassies themselves to Nagoya or Osaka, with the corollary effect of many German (and Dutch, and Belgian, and French) companies imposing evacuation orders on their employees and families as well, the US embassy actually increased its staff in Tokyo during the crisis period. We longtimers told each other that when the US bases themselves and the US embassy evacuated, and the NIKKEI stock exchange in Tokyo was closed, then we should worry.
Yes, we all watched as sailors had their leaves canceled and streamed back to the George Washington. But like so many things during this crisis, even though things were never very dangerous beyond the immediate vicinity of the reactors, we were all extrapolating the possible vectors the disaster might take, and anticipating various worse situations that might develop, even if unlikely. When we evaluate the actions of the US military, we should probably interpret them as the brass anticipating unlkely but potentially disturbing scenarios, and trying to stay ahead of them.
