Detailed text transcripts for TV channel - MSNBC - 20110318:08:05:00
Radioactivity leaking from spent fuel pools inside those buildings. now, that would not be a huge issue if the spent fuel pools were intact, if they were full of water, if those fuel rods were under 20 or 30 feet of water in there, because the water would not only keep those rods cool, the water would also have a shielding effect on the radioactivity as well. but if the pools are destroyed or empty or leaking or if the water in them is heating up to the point where it may boil off, then the fuel rods in those pools will heat up and start to break down and they will release their radioactivity ...