nuclear power plans from vermont to three mile island in pennsylvania. the latter being the site of that partial meltdown in 1979 which caused the release of radioactive gases. studies conducted immediately after that accident found one or two additional deaths as a result of cancer, and some effects upon the reproductive rates among local horses and cows. but the level of fear was exponential. the chernobyl disaster in 1986 remains the worst nuclear accident in history. but the impact on health is still being disputed. in addition to the 30 direct deaths in the accident itself, most researchers suggest there were anything from a thousand to 4,000 additional deaths from cancer as a result of radiation. but take a look at the french use of nuclear power. france now generates over 40% of its power from domestic nuclear facilities. in the last 30 years, there have been ten accidents, only three
well i think we should distinguish here between the contamination that the nuclear workers inside the plant are receiving, and that s very high indeed. probably they re going to get sick rapidly in the next week or two. and unfortunately there s a possibility of fatalities there. talking about the overall population, indeed, they re not going to be any early radiation conquen con consequences. but long-term radiation cancer is the only major concern here. even there, we are talking about still very small increases in cancer risk. natural cancer risks are very high, 40% of us, 4 out of 10 of us, are going to get cancer anyway. what we re talking about is a very small increase, even in a worst possible scenario. dr. brenner, thank you for joiningus. next, forces loyal to gadhafi hand rebels a serious blow.
as japan s nuclear crisis deepens, panic is gripping the island nation, with growing fears of exposure to radiation. already, 210,000 people have been evacuated or told to stay indoors, and as radiation levels surge in tokyo and beyond, foreigners are crowding airports trying to get out of japan. i don t know if it s common knowledge but it affects children and elderly the most. i think everyoneness scared for chair child s safety and trying to get out children first. dr. david brenner, professor of radiation at biophysics. we ve heard talk of radiation levels ten times the norm. should we be worried about the effect of that on the human body? really, at those levels the risks are going to be very, very small, indeed. i think all of our concerns are,
was a fire in a pond used to contain spent fuel rods and that water, we re told, was boiling at one point, perhaps releasing radiation directly into the atmosphere, so that s become a big concern and they are moni r monitoring the situation closely. kristin doll griagain. the official death toll following the earthquake in japan has climbed to more than 3,000 people. but tens of thousands are still missing. nearly 900,000 homes are without power in the north of the country. and 1.5 million homes without running water. itv s neil conry has the latest. reporter: each day brings new images and new revolutions of the horror left behind in the tsunami s wake. this is all that s left of a town on japan s northeast coast. 17,000 people lived here. it s feared as many as 9,000 may have died.
try to protect them from harmful effects from being exposed to radiation. kristin doll again, thank you very much indeed. as japan races to contain this nuclear disaster, the united states remains committed to helping the stricken nation with a number of naval assets nears by. with alarming levels of radiation spreading with the wind, aid efforts are becoming more complicated. several chopper crews have been exposed to radiation, leaving some aircraft carriers to reposition west of the island. a no-fly zone imposed over the damaged reactors could hinder efforts to either cool them down or close them down, if the situation worsens. nbc s chief white house correspondent chuck todd joins me now from the white house for the latest. reporter: we just got a briefing from jay carney, he s in the middle of giving the white house press briefing. he gave a couple of updates on how the united states government is assisting efforts. one all humanitarian aid they