IAEA Chief in Quake-hit Japan amid Rising Death Toll

Chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Yukiya Amano, arrived in Japan on Friday to check the worsening nuclear crisis in Fukushima, as the death toll of the March 11 powerful earthquake and ensuing tsunami rose in the country amid a grave nuclear leak threat.

Amano said he would see the situation himself and gather detailed information from the Japanese authorities to learn how the IAEA could best help.

Amano was expected to make a short stay in his home country before he returning to Vienna to discuss Japan with the 35-nation IAEA board of governors.

Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said Friday that radiation has seen a steady decline near the damaged Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant following water-dousing measures taken Thursday.

According to Measurements taken by the agency around 1.1 km west of the plant's No.2 reactor, hourly radiation dose stood at 279.4 microsievert at 5 a.m. Friday, down from 309 and 292 microsievert around the time when the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) shot water at the reactor to cool down the overheating spent fuel storage pool.

Agency officials said that they will work to restore electricity for No.1 and No.2 reactors Friday, and for No. 3, No.4 reactors Sunday, to chill down the malfunctioned reactors and overheating storage pools.

The storage pools at the power station lost their cooling function after the colossal quake and tsunami hit northeastern and eastern Japan. It is also no longer possible to monitor the water level and temperature of the pools of the four reactors.

On Thursday morning, two SDF CH-47 helicopters dumped water in turn on the damaged No.3 reactor, followed by five fire and rescue trucks equipped with high-pressure water canons shooting around 30 tons of water at the reactor later in the day.

Japan Tuesday asked the IAEA for assistance in monitoring the environment and assessing the impact of radiation on human health, including sending IAEA specialists to Japan.

Amano noted on Wednesday that the situation at the Fukushima nuclear power plant was "very serious," adding that "it is not yet time to say that things are out of control."

The National Police Agency (NPA) said on Friday that the massive quake and tsunami had left 6,405 people dead and 10,259 others unaccounted for in Japan by 9:00 a.m. Friday (0000 GMT).

Around 2,000 recovered bodies were identified by 10 a.m. Thursday in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, of which 870 were returned to their families, while the number of partially or completely destroyed buildings exceeded 75,000, the agency said.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK said that around 380,000 evacuees are now living in shelters in eight prefectures, including the worst-hit Miyagi, Fukushima and Iwate.

As a precaution, the Japanese government has evacuated residents from areas within a 20-km radius from the plant and advised those within a 30-km radius to stay indoors.

The radiation leak has caused panic among Tokyo residents who rushed to empty the shelves of supermarkets and convenience stores.

Many homes have had their windows and doors wrapped by protective plastic as news of rising radiation levels has caused anxiety.

Also, the lack of food, drinking water, medicines, electricity and fuel has been a common problem in Japan's quake-hit areas, where supplies of essential resources have been wiped out and communications infrastructures crippled.

The Japanese government on Thursday announced the possibility of a large-scale power outage in the Tokyo area as demand in the area may outstrip supply while temperatures fall in the evening.

To improve communication, the government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. launched a joint crisis headquarters to deal with the situation at the Fukushima power plant.

The Transport Ministry has also imposed a no-fly zone within 30 km of the stricken plant in Fukushima as the catastrophe escalates by the hour.

The Bank of Japan on Wednesday pledged an additional 13.8 trillion yen (170 billion U.S. dollars) to ensure the nation's banking system stays liquid following the great quake and tsunami.

Financial markets plunged after the quake and tsunami and the central bank's unprecedented moves were aimed at providing enough funds for local banks and institutions in quake-hit regions.

The 9.0-magnitude quake struck at 2:46 p.m. (0546 GMT) last Friday, with the epicenter at 130 km east of the coast of Miyagi Prefecture at a depth of 24.4 km under seabed. It then set off a deadly tsunami up to 10 meters high that sent walls of water sweeping across coastal cities in the north, putting many other Pacific countries and regions on high alert.