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Japan's Nuclear Crisis; Gadhafi Forces on the Move

Aired March 16, 2011 - 15:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: And, of course, my promise to you, we are not going to get too far from Japan. We will get to the newest images and also the new information we have there in just one moment.

But, first, I want you to listen to what Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has now just told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We don't want any ambiguity. Only the Security Council can authorize action, and if they do authorize action, there needs to be a true international response, including Arab leadership and partnership.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Wolf is traveling right along with the secretary in Northern Africa, and we will have much more from her in THE SITUATION ROOM.

But this next dramatic video from Libya is really the reason the situation there is increasingly urgent now.

You hear that, obviously. Then you saw the result, the smoke not too far away. These images show a rocket-propelled grenade hitting anti-Gadhafi forces. This is near Ras Lanuf. They are ready for battle, and so, by the way, are Gadhafi's men.

CNN's Nic Robertson is reporting on the army's movement in Ajdabiya. He says the soldiers are jubilant, they're confident, they're ready to do battle here in neighboring Benghazi.

And it's with that in mind, we learn that "The New York Times" today has lost touch with four of its journalists in Libya. So we have a lot to get through with our teams in Libya today here in just a bit.

But, first, as promised, to the latest devastating reports here out of Japan. Watch this. This is yet another view of the quake that hit Japan back on Friday from one of our own iReporters. We have now learned the death toll is over the 4,000 mark. Plus, another 8,000 are still missing.

My colleague Soledad O'Brien is standing by for us in Tokyo. And we will speak to her about the warnings they have just received here in just a second. We will take you live to Japan. But first, Ivan Watson, to get the latest here on the fight to prevent a meltdown, maybe, I should say, multiple meltdowns, at that stricken nuclear plant. And I want to show you some pictures here first. Folks, this is the closest we have gotten yet to understanding, to seeing the story.

This is a nuclear power plant. And this is what happened since that catastrophic tsunami apparently caused the plant to lose cooling. We're going to continue to show you some more of these pictures as we listen quickly to energy secretary -- this is Steven Chu. He spoke just a short time ago on really the depth of this crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN CHU, U.S. ENERGY SECRETARY: The events unfolding in the Japan incidents actually appear to be more serious than Three Mile Island. To what extent, we don't really know now. And, so, as they're unfolding very rapidly, on an hour-by-hour, day-by-day basis, and there are conflicting reports, and so we don't really know in detail what's happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So you heard him off the top there. He said it's worse than Three Mile Island by his estimates. But as Chu tells it, even the U.S. government doesn't really precisely know what's happening there.

So keep that in mind as we show you some of these pictures that aired live today. What you're looking at there, it's either smoke. It could be steam. It rose today from the plant after officials reported a second atomic reactor may have ruptured.

Later on, a Japanese spokesman seemed to walk that statement back, saying damage to the number three reactor appeared not to be that severe. So, going forward, we say who knows. But here's what we do know. Here's the thing. Radiation levels then spiked above the plant which prompted the Japanese to ground those helicopters trying to cool the plant. We talked about this yesterday, how those helicopters were going to drop some of the cooler water on the plants.

But keep this in mind. They have now got concerns at all six reactors. You see them, one through six, right there in front of you, including the top -- the two off to the side. Those are numbers five and six. And then you have four, five and six. They were all offline when the tsunami hit last Friday, but the problems developing there concern used fuel rods that are still stored on the site.

Chad Myers, we're going to talk about some of those spent fuel rods because I know we know more or less where they are. But I want to begin with these pictures. We're finally seeing today, instead of that wider aerial shot, closer images of the damage.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Those closer images were quite startling. They literally looked like that was damage from the outside, like the tsunami may have caused that. That didn't happen. Those buildings were intact after the earthquake and after the tsunami.

That damage came from explosions or fires from within the buildings themselves. And then that long shot, it was fuzzy, it was hazy. You couldn't really see -- you could see the steam.

(CROSSTALK)

MYERS: That was 30 kilometers away -- 18 miles away, they had that helicopter out there taking that shot because they were afraid for the crew of that helicopter. That tells you something about the men and women maybe that are in that plant right now trying to keep this thing from melting down.

The U.S. Embassy in Japan, within the hour, has now recommended all U.S. personnel within 50 miles of the plant to evacuate. That number is getting larger and larger and larger.

BALDWIN: Well, that's interesting you say that. If that was you said 18 miles away, so 18 miles is that second radius that the officials are saying shelter in place. So those people aren't necessarily asked to evacuate. And that's their vantage.

(CROSSTALK)

MYERS: That was the helicopter in the ocean.

BALDWIN: Wow.

MYERS: Right? But the problem is that's the way the wind was blowing all day.

BALDWIN: OK.

MYERS: So if -- the radiation we knew was coming out, that was blowing right at that helicopter crew, and there are people there that are coming back, don't think they're exposed, they're being tested and in fact are finding that they have radiation on their suits.

BALDWIN: Let me ask you about the thing that people were most concerned about this time yesterday, and that was those spent fuel rods, the used fuel rods that were sitting in those storage pools that were still hot, still radioactive. And now do you know where they are?

MYERS: They are in the building. They are slightly below the place where the explosion took place. Almost like we lost half -- we lost like the facade of an Old West movie theater. You go and you take a look at an old Western like "Gunsmoke," and the buildings are here and then there's a big facade on top of the building to make it look taller when you're out in the Old West. Well, that facade is --

BALDWIN: That is gone.

MYERS: That is gone. That was actually the attic that was just holding -- that's where some of the gases and the fumes or vapors were pumped in there. That's where the explosion was. Slightly right below that, we have kind of a blowup view, so to speak, of the building itself.

BALDWIN: Look at that.

MYERS: Look at that. That is what it looks like now after that hydrogen explosion, when it got so hot that hydrogen and oxygen disassociated. And I know enough about this. At about 2,200 degrees hydrogen and oxygen can come apart, H2O. The hydrogen comes apart from the oxygen.

And when that happened, we basically had a Hindenburg. And the Hindenburg blew up three different spots. The spent fuel rods, back to that question, there's good news/bad news. The spent fuel rods don't have nearly the amount of potential radiation.

BALDWIN: OK.

MYERS: The bad news is they're not protected by any type of capsule. They're out there. They were underwater in a pool, but they're -- and they're not as radioactive. They're done. They're done being used as power, but they sit there in these plants until they're really cool, at least a year. And the water has dried up a little. The water has heated up. So the radiation is coming --

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: I have to ask quickly and then I have to get to Soledad here in Tokyo.

MYERS: Yes, I saw her.

BALDWIN: But we know that the radiation levels, at times, they are really spiking. Do we know where that radiation is going as it leaves the plant?

MYERS: No, we don't.

BALDWIN: We don't know.

MYERS: We don't. And the better question is, where is it coming from? We also know that something down below one of the reactors went from three atmospheres, then after a boom went to one atmosphere. That means that there was pressure and then all of a sudden there was no pressure.

Clearly, the -- whatever vessel that was, of course, that failed and where that radiation went, we don't know either. It's going into the atmosphere and the wind is blowing most of it out to sea. We can only hope that that lasts a long time. But weather patterns change and I don't see that lasting more than about three more days before the wind starts to blow it back on Japan.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: OK. You and I aren't finished talking about this.

MYERS: Of course. BALDWIN: And we are also going to get to Soledad O'Brien, who is standing by in Tokyo.

But I have just learned here that CNN senior international correspondent Nic Robertson has just called in. He's on the phone line for me.

And, Nic, I believe you're in Eastern Libya. And story is really escalating today as you have these Gadhafi forces moving eastward toward that rebel stronghold of Benghazi. Were you in Ajdabiya today? Tell me what you saw.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, we have seen the biggest sort of demonstration, if you will, or the biggest amount of Moammar Gadhafi's military might here.

We have seen his army spread out on the outskirts of Ajdabiya, getting ready to advance into the city, at least a dozen tanks, dozens upon dozens of trucks carrying ammunition, ammunition from AK-47s to tanks piled high.

We have seen hundreds and hundreds, probably several thousand soldiers there, and also a lot of heavy rocket systems, anti-aircraft systems, heavy machine guns, armored personnel carriers, so much military equipment lined up on the outskirts of the city.

It completely dwarfs the equipment that we have seen the rebel forces with. The army says that it has some control inside Ajdabiya. It says there are small pockets of rebel resistance, but the army that we see lined up here and the ammunition that they have with them and the supply column of food and ambulances as well really creates the impression that this army really is on a roll, and it won't be long before it's taken control Ajdabiya. And then you know what? It's only a 100-mile drive to Benghazi.

And these soldiers were all fired up, the tanks revving up, getting ready to go into battle while we were there, Brooke.

BALDWIN: You mentioned -- is it correct to say, Nic, that ultimately the endgame here for Gadhafi's forces would be overtaking Benghazi and then if that is the case, then what for the opposition forces?

ROBERTSON: It's not clear if they will go directly to Benghazi. They could also outflank Benghazi, go to the east and take the much smaller town of Tobruk.

The biggest problems with their battles have been where there have been civilian populations. Those battles have taken longer. They tend to hold back more. So Benghazi may be a battle that they don't want to get into immediately. They might try and surround it by going around to Tobruk.

But what we have seen, this -- this -- such a massive show of force, this scale of the army that is laid out in a very professional way, the way that their supply columns lined up with the fuel tankers towards the back, the way that it's all prepared to go into battle, it gives the impression of a somewhat professional, organized army really getting ready to move --

BALDWIN: Yes.

ROBERTSON: -- in a way that the rebel force will not be able to stop, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Nic, could I just ask you on a personal level -- and I know you have been covering areas of conflict for years and years for us here at CNN, but "The New York Times" is reporting today that there are four "Times" journalists now missing in Libya. How safe do you feel?

ROBERTSON: We feel quite safe. We're with the government forces here, and they have a vested interest in not -- in keeping us safe, because they know it would reflect badly on them, the government forces.

Where journalists on the government side get into trouble and where we have had trouble is more is when we have been trying to operate independently, and then we have been picked up there. In one case, my producer (INAUDIBLE) we were picked up at gunpoint. He -- he suffered mock executions.

We have talked here with the army about the "New York Times" journalists. And they have told us they have called into Ajdabiya. They're not aware of them being there. They're not aware that their forces have picked them up. They have passed the word. And they say that if their forces do pick them up, then they will be treated well and they will be brought back to Tripoli.

So the government is aware that these journalists are missing, and the soldiers inside the city, their commanders at the very least, are aware of it and will be looking out for them, and say that they will treat them well. That's what they're telling us right now, Brooke.

BALDWIN: That's what they tell you, frightening nonetheless, Nic Robertson. Please, to you and your crew, stay safe.

And we will have much more and much more as to what is happening here, quick-developing developments out of Libya.

Nic, my thanks to you.

And when we come back, we're going to go to Tokyo, live to Soledad O'Brien, who is standing by. She will talk about this massive crush of people trying to get out of town and her own fears perhaps of the radiation.

Also, they are the unidentified main players the world is very curious about, those nuclear plant workers staying behind while everyone else is getting out. It is all now up to them, right now, to prevent this nuclear catastrophe. So who are they, and what's it like for them inside those plants right now? Stay here. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: OK. I want to take you back to what's happening in Japan.

And joining me now, one of our correspondents who's been there for multiple days here. Soledad O'Brien, there she is live for me in Tokyo.

And, Soledad, so much to talk about here, but, first, you're safe, your crew is safe. From what I understand, you haven't been exposed to radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi plant, but what are you hearing about the threat around other parts of the country? And also it appears culturally the Japanese not too much out really panicking.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: No. I think that there have been many calls for people not to panic. And it's not only for Japanese. It's for everybody.

There's been many, many pressers during the day from Japanese officials about what's been happening within the plant. And sometimes some of those conversations are a little bit contradictory. We know that there have been some problems at Daiichi three and four, the real focus.

And so I think like everybody else, we're just walking. We're in Tokyo, and we were in Akita yesterday. So we haven't been close to the reactors, and so we feel very safe in terms of our own personal exposure.

The bigger issue I think is in terms of how close can you get to cover a story and also for the people who are in the areas most affected and looking at those workers who, as you pointed out in the last section, are the ones who are responsible now for trying to fix the problems with those reactors, we're watching it like everybody else.

So I would say we're always very cognizant of the risks and we continually are monitoring like everybody else what's happening, what's changed. It's a very fluid and flexible situation. And everybody, not just journalists, obviously, but the people here in Japan, are trying to figure out what is happening every step of the way.

BALDWIN: What are you seeing as far as people trying to get out of Japan? I know you have been around different parts of the country in terms of people at the airports. Are you seeing a crush of people trying to leave, or no?

O'BRIEN: Absolutely.

At Narita Airport, we have been advised for anybody who is trying to get out to get there hours and hours and hours in advance, because it's just so crowded there, thousands and thousands of people. We flew into Haneda yesterday. And at night, it wasn't so crowded, but earlier in the day, again, same thing, big lines, very, very crowded airport.

And I think it's a sense that people really don't know exactly what to do. So those who feel like they're in a position to leave are taking the opportunity to get out while they possibly can. But everything that I have seen has been very orderly. Even though the lines are long and it's jammed, you know, it's just a matter of time. People aren't panicking. People aren't pushing and shoving and shouting. It seems very orderly and it certainly feels that way from what we have been seeing, too.

BALDWIN: Soledad, I'm also just curious because you tend to be one of our journalists who we send into devastated areas, whether it's Haiti or Katrina or now Japan. Is there any one image that will just sort of remain with you forever?

O'BRIEN: You know, I just never get used to seeing the power of a tsunami. And, also, you know, aftershocks I think are hard to get used to, too. But the power of a tsunami as we have been reporting from some of those coastal areas that have just been blown out -- you know, the earthquake damage was bad, but the tsunami damage they will tell is 90 percent of the damage you see, because homes just splinter and collapse, especially in cities.

In some of the villages, the damage is actually less dramatic. But in a city, when a tsunami has roared through, it just never fails to stun me about just the power of a tsunami. It's hard to put into words, honestly.

BALDWIN: We're looking at some of your video from Kesennuma. And I know having -- I have never covered the aftermath of a tsunami, but other examples where it's one thing for us to sit and watch it on television, and it's quite another for you and others to be seeing this in person.

It's almost difficult at the time to wrap your head around it.

But, Soledad O'Brien, you have done a fantastic job. And safe travels to you and your crew. Thank you.

Coming up here, it is all up to them. They're the ones staying behind to try to prevent a nuclear catastrophe in Japan while everyone else evacuates.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're probably wearing full-face respirators or (INAUDIBLE) equipment, trying to communicate in the dark, moving around with flashlights. And, as you said, they're using emergency rations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That was a former nuclear power plant supervisor talking about what he thinks those nuclear workers in Japan are dealing with right now. We're going to talk much more about them ahead. Also, we're going to take you back to Libya, where "The New York Times" says four of its journalists missing. A lot to tackle. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Want to take you back to this quickly escalating situation today in Libya.

You have forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, they're waging intense battles today as they head eastward in this effort to take back cities now held by the rebels. Also today, "The New York Times" revealed that four of its journalists have now disappeared while covering the battle in the rebel-held city of Ajdabiya.

CNN's Arwa Damon joins me now from Eastern Libya.

And, Arwa, I just spoke with Nic Robertson. He was describing the Gadhafi forces as carrying small guns, heavy artillery, AK-47s, rockets. Clearly, there is a government crackdown. It's intensifying today. Is it over what you have seen up to now?

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's impossible at this point in time for us to accurately assess exactly what's happening in the city of Ajdabiya, but we do know, as Nic was saying there, that on the other end they were receiving a heavy and sustained pounding from airstrikes, artillery, very intense fighting.

In fact, we tried to get into the city from the eastern part and were stopped at an opposition checkpoint, simply told it was too dangerous, one eyewitness coming out, a fighter, saying that pro- Gadhafi forces have set up sniper positions inside the city, another man coming out saying that he saw an entire family killed by one of those bombs.

And, of course, this is coming as the international community continues to debate this issue of a U.N. resolution, a no-fly zone that opposition forces have basically been calling for, for over a month now. And the big question we're hearing here is, what is it going to actually take for the international community to stop taking this bystander role and actually take action that is going to help save lives?

The sense amongst the opposition is that perhaps they have taken this as far as they can. And unless they get some form of outside help, they're simply all going to be massacred, Brooke.

BALDWIN: It's a bleak reality potentially for the opposition forces. I mean, it's a story, Arwa, you have been reporting on day in and day out.

When you compare what the Gadhafi forces have in terms of ammunition and strength and readiness to do battle vs. the opposition, would you see -- do you see them weakening at all here under all this pressure? DAMON: No, what you basically have here is a group of fighters, the opposition, that is by and large young men with absolutely no previous fighting experience, arming themselves with whatever they happen to find in the arms depots that they manage to control up against a very fierce and well-trained fighting machine.

They say that they will fight until the very end. They say that they have a plan B in case this no-fly zone doesn't materialize, but it's really difficult to foresee how they're actually going to be able to stand up against Colonel Gadhafi's forces, especially since they have airpower on their side and superior artillery capabilities.

BALDWIN: Yes.

DAMON: But, for the opposition, it really is a matter of fight to the death, Brooke. We talk with these young fighters, we talk with women, with everybody, and they say, look, we know that at the end of the day, if we have to die, we are going to die. And we're either going to die fighting or we're going to be killed by Gadhafi's forces, because if he manages to roll all the way into Benghazi and remain in power, he's going to kill us all.

That's what they believe here, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Right. You've said they feel they know -- have no choice.

Quickly, Arwa, "The New York Times" missing -- they're reporting these four missing journalists. What are you learning on the ground about that, if anything?

DAMON: Yes, Brooke, very disturbing.

We actually drove past them yesterday in the city of Ajdabiya at around 1:00 p.m. According to "The New York Times," they have not been heard from since yesterday afternoon. We really don't know where they are at this point.

We were actually trying to call them yesterday evening when we realized that they hadn't come back to Benghazi. None of us here could get through to them. These are four very seasoned journalists, very experienced when it comes to war. But this is a battlefield that is very fluid. It changes at all times.

Colonel Gadhafi's military is saying that they don't have them in their custody, saying that if they do end up with them, they promise that they will be kept safe. But this is a situation where it's very difficult to predict the outcome, so everyone, of course, very concerned, very much wishing and hoping that they do end up returning home safely, Brooke.

BALDWIN: It is very, very frightening for all of us here.

Arwa Damon live in Eastern Libya -- Arwa, thank you. Stay safe to you. Coming up, we're going to go back to Japan to talk a little bit more about those workers who are remaining behind at that Fukushima Daiichi plant, who are the ones risking their lives to try to prevent any kind of nuclear meltdown.

Stay here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: I know so many of you are so engaged and you want to know what's happening with the Fukushima Daiichi plant. He was so fantastic yesterday, we're bring him back today. From Washington on the phone, Robert Alvarez of the Institute for Policy Studies, and he's going to try again and walk me through some of the issues they're facing here at these reactors at this one particular plant.

Robert, I know when we spoke yesterday I had asked you if there was something you would be watching for, perhaps as you read the tea leaves. You said you would be watching to see if this plant would be pulling any of these Japanese nuclear plant workers out. They did that briefly. They've since sent them back in, but what does that move tell you?

ROBERT ALVAREZ, SENIOR SCHOLAR, INSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES: Well, I think that the situation has taken such a serious turn that they're into desperate last resorts and hoping for the best. So that they're bringing people back in is important, but I think you have to understand that those people who are being brought back in are going to be encountering life-threatening situations.

BALDWIN: And as they're encountering these life-threatening situations, Robert, can you help paint a picture for us of these 50 at any given time workers who are inside these plants? Correct me if I'm wrong, but the electricity is gone. So is it pitch dark inside? Help me understand what they're going through day in and day out.

ALVAREZ: Well, I'm not sure if they're going inside buildings or not. If they are, they're bringing in battery-powered lighting and things like that. Their instrumentation of the reactors is down, and probably those kinds of things, sort of figuratively operating in the dark.

The other problem is just being in areas where there are deposits of radioactivity that make it dangerous or there is radiation emanating from certain parts of the reactor that are dangerous.

BALDWIN: From what I understand, they're taking these rotations and perhaps it's only minutes at a time where they go into those pockets of higher levels of radiation. How much in those moments, how much radiation would they be exposed to?

ALVAREZ: Well, the numbers I've seen -- this is fragmentary information -- are such that if you were there for an hour you'll start to have, you know, sort of the effects of tissue destruction.

BALDWIN: What does that mean? ALVAREZ: That means that you start to have -- you start to have symptoms of radiation sickness. You start to have burns, loss of hair, bleeding gums. And what's happening is the radiation is penetrating the body and radiating all your organs. And if you have too much of that going on over time, it can cause basically all your organs to collapse.

BALDWIN: Oh, goodness. Well, that is potentially what some of these workers are facing, but there's so much more I want to talk to you about, including the IAEA several days after the tsunami and quake, they're headed there. I'm curious as to the significance of that. Several other issues as well.

Robert Alvarez, I'll be talking to you next hour. We're all very curious what's happening at this particular plant. My thanks to you for now.

Coming up here, do you have any idea what these tablets are? These are iodide tablets. You're supposed to take them if you have been or will soon be exposed to any kind of radiation. Plants in the U.S. have now gone into overdrive producing these things. They're also flying off the shelves in some parts of this country. More on this, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. PENNY BORENSTEIN, SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER: The most important thing we want people to know is do not take this medication at this point. You will be advised to do so when there is a threat of exposure.

JAMES THRALL, RADIOLOGIST-IN-CHIEF, MASS. GEN HOSPITAL: In my opinion, there is no radiation risk in the U.S. whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Despite reassurances from health experts, people are buying up these things, these potassium iodide pills in the U.S., especially along the west coast. Now some manufacturers like Fleming Pharmaceuticals say they're bombarded with requests for the drug. They've ramped up production.

This even as the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission says it does not expect, does not expect, harmful radiation levels from Japan to reach American soil. But they are increasing monitoring efforts in the western U.S. and while the U.S. surgeon general is not voicing worry, she's careful not to dismiss the public's concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REGINA BENJAMIN, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: I'm not sure that there's a level of need right now, and certainly the health officers are monitoring. We at CDC are monitoring and will certainly alert the public if there's ever a real threat. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Now, we have been hearing a lot about millisieverts, the unit of measure used to gauge radioactivity exposure. The average person is exposed to fewer than three millisieverts a year just from natural sources and the environment, which isn't considered very dangerous. Last night our chief medical correspondent in Japan, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, explained to Anderson Cooper when to use the iodide pills and what levels of radiation people need to worry about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC 360": We've heard about iodide pills. It's unclear, some people are saying you take those in advance of any exposure. The advice we've been given is it's only in the event of exposure.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Here's the thing about iodide pills. Once you take it, you have a certain window of protection, about 48 hours. So you don't want to take it too early because you sort of close the window on yourself. So timing is really key with this.

It is protective, but you usually want to take it in the face of an imminent exposure or right after an exposure. Then you've got yourself some protection. If you take it too early, you won't get the protection when you need it.

COOPER: And obviously people in all of these different areas are trying to measure radiation doses to get a sense for people. You have the same thing I've got.

GUPTA: Yes. This basically tells you two things. One is, since you're wearing it, how much radiation you've been exposed to. This is measuring that. And also it has an alarm, yours does, if you suddenly find yourself in an area with too much radiation. It will alarm. You can't see the number here, but I've been wearing this for about 24 hours. It went up 0.001 now, very, very small amount. Probably just from normal background radiation. Yours is the still at zero. But it's likely to go up and that would be normal. If it got up to the one range, 1,000 times that, then that would be of concern.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That is Japan. Obviously there are still some concerns here in the U.S. You remember yesterday we listed two Energy Secretary Steven Chu. He was asked whether the nuclear disaster will have influence on this country. We pointed out we couldn't glean much from his answer. Here he is again today appearing on Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN CHU, U.S. ENERGY SECRETARY: It would be premature to say anything other than we will use this opportunity to learn as best we can and consider carefully how to go forward.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not sure what you just said.

CHU: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does the president support new nuclear power plant construction in the United States?

CHU: The present budget is what it is, and we're asking for loan guarantees. The present budget is also calling for small modular reactors. That position has not been changed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So that's a yes.

CHU: That's a yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So you just heard Chu ultimately saying yes, we're going forward. But, Dana Bash live in Washington here, clearly some concern up there. No?

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No question about it. There is concern. I have spoken to several lawmakers who are strong supporters of nuclear energy, and they have said they're worried about what this horrible crisis in Japan means for nuclear energy in the U.S. which has been gaining traction in recent years on both sides of the aisle.

Some Democrats who have long opposed nuclear energy, they are seizing on this, calling for a moratorium on U.S. plants. Talking to congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle, they don't seem to be ready for that. You watch Congress like I do. Usually when things like this happen, there are wild calls for major changes. Not right now for this.

BALDWIN: We now know we have more than 20 nuclear power plants at least on the drawing board. Let's take a look at this. They're all in various stages of the permitting process. Could, Dana, these plants either individually or as you see them as a whole, could we then see delays in getting any of them up and running?

BASH: There have been some calls, Brooke, for the NRC, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to hold off on approving the new permits you just showed until more information is known from the dire situation in Japan. Homeland Security Chairman Joe Lieberman, who was actually a strong supporter of nuclear energy, he's one saying that.

Congress has the ability to vote themselves to delay or at least stop the pending permits, but again so far there's no real push to do that. But one thing that we should keep an eye on when it comes to nuclear reactors in this country is money because the nuclear energy industry will tell you that a big challenge they have in expanding is getting investors. And to do that, they need loan guarantees from the federal government.

The president has asked Congress for $36 billion in loan guarantees in order to do that. Opponents are pushing saying, we don't want to do that right now because look at what happened in Japan. If that happened in the United States, the taxpayer would be on the hook.

But you heard Secretary Chu. He said the president is still behind them so it's very interesting to see that, despite the unbelievable crisis going on, a lot of reluctance to do anything right now until more information is known.

BALDWIN: Dana Bash, thank you.

Coming up, the U.S. insists there was no quid pro quo between the countries, but a CIA contractor charged with murder has just been released in Pakistan.

Also, did you see this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AKIHITO, JAPANESE EMPEROR (via translator): I am deeply concerned that the current nuclear plant situation is critical. I truly hope that with so many people working together to help, this situation will not worsen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: This is a rare speech, five minutes, from the emperor in Japan. So, coming up, we'll talk more about that speech, about the significance of him speaking, and how the Japanese continue to remain fairly calm, fairly patient in the wake of such a tragedy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: I'll take you back to our extended coverage of Japan in just a moment. First, I wanted to get to this, one of our top stories here. American CIA contractor Raymond Davis is a free man. He was released from a Pakistan jail after the families of two men he killed in January forgave him.

Davis says he shot the men after they attacked him in the city of Lahor. A lawyer connected to the case tells CNN the families were paid more than $1 million in compensation. It is not yet known who paid. There are conflicting reports over the amount of money also.

Coming up, reports of doctors being targeted in Bahrain today. CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom was in the country but he got kicked out. I'll speak to him about what's happening on the ground, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: In the days since the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis hitting Japan, we have seen so many extraordinary pictures, not the least among them here, scenes of people standing in line, long, long lines, patiently waiting, and in some cases for hours just for a chance to use the phone. No one complains. No one tries to cut in line. And we've heard from many of you who are wondering this. How can the Japanese people be so calm, so orderly in the wake of horrific devastation that would bring chaos to so many of our own cities and towns? Even Japan's emperor sees that the world has noticed. He talked about that in a taped speech to the Japanese people, but it's the emperor's speech that is truly extraordinary.

Jeffrey Kingston is director of Asian Studies at Temple University in Tokyo. Jeffrey, I've done my reading on the history of emperors in Japan, and I know they were once regarded as living gods, today still very, very highly revered. But the fact that we're hearing from Emperor Akihito speaking signifies what to you?

JEFFREY KINGSTON, DIR. ASIAN STUDIES, TEMPLE UNIVERSITY, JAPAN: Well, it may seem a bit of an anachronism in the 21st century that the Japanese people look to their emperor for consolation, but, you know, I think that he's extremely popular emperor. He's known as "the people's emperor," and I think that his words did provide consolation, inspiration to the tens of thousands of victims of the horrible earthquake and devastating tsunami.

He also made reference to the nuclear emergency, and he did refer to the need for everybody to pitch in, pull together, and try to overcome this adversary and noted that we all had to be in it for the long haul. So I think his comments actually were quite welcomed.

BALDWIN: He also -- the emperor also mentioned that the international community has been, to use his word, "impressed" with the Japanese victims. My own best friend is Japanese. She just e- mailed me and said the perfect word to describe the mentality is "gaman (ph)," the restraint of self. You've been there for years. What does this say about national character?

KINGSTON: Yes, "gaman (ph)" means perseverance, the Japanese equivalent of the stiff upper lip. You don't complain. You defer. You sacrifice your personal interests for the greater good. Right from the young age Japanese are told to value the interest of the group. Every September 1st every Japanese school child goes through an earthquake drill that commemorates the 1923 Tokyo earthquake.

So people are attuned to the needs of the group. They are prepared to deal with major natural disasters, and in a sense it's part of the Japanese national identity. People are used to adversity and it brings out the best in the Japanese people.

BALDWIN: You also have this part of it. The U.S. military commander in Japan says he has not been asked for help on any large level which is so unlike so many other disasters in, for example, third world countries. We know Japan's economy, you know, number three in the world. Why is that? Is it a sense of pride?

KINGSTON: Well, I think compared to 1995 during the Kobe earthquake Japan spurned initially all offers of international assistance. They also, you know, wouldn't relax restrictions on sniffer dogs so that they would have to remain in quarantine. As you know, the first 72 hours is key, so keeping the dogs ten days, two weeks of quarantine made it sure they weren't going to save anybody.

I think this time around Japan has been actually accepting international offers of assistance and the U.S. military has been contributing a great deal to the relief efforts, and so I think that these gestures by the international community are appreciated in Japan, and they are need, given the scale of the devastation.

BALDWIN: Sure I think that perhaps most people would agree with you, but I think it's the Japanese aren't asking for major, major aid on any large scale, at least according to the U.S. military, but we're all thinking about you and everyone in Japan. Jeffrey Kingston, thanks in helping to understand the culture there.

Coming up, CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom will join me live to tell me what he saw in Bahrain today before getting kicked out of country. There have been reports of doctors were being targeted. More on that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: In the midst of all the news coming out of Japan here, we're still committed to bringing you the latest developments out of the Middle East.

And I want you to look as these pictures. These are pictures -- this is Bahrain where we're getting reports of government forces storming the main hospital, beating doctors, firing on protesters. Also today, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Bahrain is on the wrong track.

CNN correspondent Mohammed Jamjoom has been covering the crackdown there in Bahrain and he joins me live. Mohammed, I first want to ask you about the fact that you were asked to leave the country just a short time ago. What happened?

MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN INTERNATONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, we're still not sure. I was informed by the ministry of information after a full day of reporting there on the crackdown that was going on that I was going to be made to leave, not the rest of the CNN team. In fact, we have another CNN reporter en route right now, just me specifically.

We kept trying to find out why. They would not say. They insisted that I had to go, so I was expelled and escorted to the airport by a ministry of information official and just landed back in Abu Dhabi about an hour ago.

BALDWIN: So before you left though, Mohammed, we're seeing pictures, fires, violence, and I've read reports doctors are hiding in hospital rooms. What did you see while you were there?

JAMJOOM: Well, from our vantage point, which was overlooking the area where the crackdown was, we awoke to the sound of gunfire. We saw large plumes of black smoke. We saw tear gas being dispersed to try to disperse crowds of protesters. We saw anti-riot police going through the streets, even shooting tear gas at residential neighborhoods to make sure onlookers would go away. It was a very, very violent scene from where we were looking on.

Now throughout the day it got more and more disturbing because we started calling hospitals to try to find out about injuries, about people that were wounded. There were so many accounts coming in from witnesses saying that they were being attacked, and the government simply wasn't talking to us.

We got ahold of three doctors inside the hospital, the main hospital in Manama. They said the hospital was being surrounded by security forces, that security forces weren't letting injured in, weren't letting doctors out, had in fact stormed the hospital and started beating the staff and doctors there. They were very concerned about that and what it meant for the larger picture.

The government issued statements via their state television channel denying all those allegations, saying those allegations were patently untrue. But we were never able to get any kind of Information Ministry official or any other government official to speak to us on camera or on the phone and give us on-the-record comments about what exactly it was that was going on and what crackdown was playing out there.

BALDWIN: Mohammed Jamjoom in Abu Dhabi after being asked to leave Bahrain following the protests there.

Mohammed, thank you.