Not exact matches
If left exposed to air, they may catch fire or explode,
spreading radioactive particles into the air.
And that means there may be two direct paths for
radioactive particle byproducts of nuclear fission, such as cesium 137 and iodine 131, to escape and
spread radiation — cracks in containment as well as the spent fuel pools now open to the air.
After all, 30 kilometers was the extent of the
spread of dangerous
radioactive material even at Chernobyl, a far worse nuclear accident that included an intense fire that wafted
radioactive particles more than 9,000 meters into the air.