[Rosemary Church, Cnn Anchor:] It is 1:00 p.m. in Tokyo right now. I'm Rosemary Church at CNN Center. We do want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world to our special coverage of the disaster in Japan. And now, let's bring you up-to-date on the very latest developments, which include a new explosion of one of Japan's nuclear reactors and new discovery of at least 2,000 bodies in northeast Japan. Japanese officials reported moments ago an explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's number three reactor building of the number one plant. I know it sounds confusing but it's very important we make those specifications. Now, white smoke, we're hearing, could be seen rising from that facility, the same facility officials are working on the assumption of at least one partial meltdown and one of the reactors. Now, Daiichi is a plant where authorities have recorded higher than normal radiation levels and officials are they're trying to contain any potential radioactive leak by flooding any troubled reactors with sea water. Now, the confirmed death toll, as we mentioned, from Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami off just northeast Japan is about 1,600. But there's just been a report of another 2,000 bodies found in Japan's Miyagi Prefecture. Now, the overall death toll is expected to grow much higher, of course and possibly in the tens of thousands. That is the fear. Now, because rescuers say they're finding some survivors of the tsunami, that has offered comfort to many people. But the effort is becoming increasingly difficult, of course. And they fear thousands may have been swept away by the giant waves. Now, for more on this explosion and immediate repercussions, our Stan Grant joins us now from Tokyo with the latest on the crisis. Stan, there has been a number of conflicting reports on this. We just want to get an idea on exactly what has happened here because a lot of clarifications coming in to exactly what occurred. What are you learning?
[Stan Grant, Cnn Senior International Correspondent:] What exactly has happened is still unsure, Rosemary. But we just had a news conference from the cabinet secretary from the nuclear safety agency and he is assuming that it was the hydrogen that has exploded there in the building housing the reactor. Now, the assumption is based on their projections. This was expected. They've been warning of another potential explosion there for the last couple of days now. Cast your mind back, there was an earlier explosion in reactor number one. That was also because of the buildup of hydrogen that damaged an outer wall of the building housing the reactor. The same thing is assumed to have happened here build-up of hydrogen as a result of the pressure that has come about because of the overheating of the reactor and attempts to cool the reactor. And now, that hydrogen has exploded, damaging the outside of the building. Now, they're also assuming similar damage to the structure, that some of the wall could have been could have been blown away in this explosion. But we're seeing the smoke into the air and the investigation is continuing in that situation. So, we're waiting to get the latest on that before we have full clarification. You talk there about radiation levels. Of course, there was concern about those levels being higher than normal. They're now reporting that those levels don't appear to be getting any higher. And, of course, officials here have always stressed that those radiation levels have not been to an extent where they can cause harm to people. We also understand there are still 600 residents within that 20- kilometer exclusion zone; around 200,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, but 600 remaining there for various reasons. They have been told to stay inside within that exclusion zone. But an investigation is under way into the exact cause. But the assumption is that it was a hydrogen explosion in the outer building that houses the reactor Rosemary.
[Church:] And, Stan, as we were talking, I do want to explain the vision we have to the air to right of everybody's screen. This is not live, not live pictures. It comes from NHK television. It was taken about 90 minutes ago and, of course, that camera has been trained on that Fukushima nuclear power plant facility for some time watching exactly what's been going on and we've been watching and monitoring here and in our other bureaus what is being said at NHK TV, how they've been reporting this and trying to relay that to our global audience. Stan, just going back to these fears, of course, the important clarification, I guess here, is because it's damaged to the outside of the building, rather than the reactor, that is the message that authorities really want to get across to people, isn't it?
[Grant:] Yes. It has been the message they're getting out for some days now. When they had the initial explosion in reactor number one, of course, there were concerns because the reactor has been overheating and attempts to try to cool it were failing. There was concern that there could have been damage to the reactor or the structure surrounding the reactor, the casing of the reactor. There have been attempts to refute that saying it is just a hydrogen explosion not related to the reactor but in the outer building that houses the reactor. They're assuming here the same thing again. And those assumptions are based on projections because of the build-up of hydrogen as a result of trying to deal with the heating of the reactor. As far as the reactor, so far, Rosemary, they're continuing to pump seawater in there. Now, seawater is seen very much as a last resort in this situation, but that's what was necessary to try to keep the levels to an extent that they can cool the reactor. And they say that has been stabilized the situation, that the sea water has continued to be pumped in there. So, at least they're able to still get water in there and be able to stabilize the situation. And this outer building being destroyed because of the hydrogen build-up and once again stressing that it was not the reactor itself. But investigations, of course, are still underway and this could always change, Rosemary.
[Church:] And, Stan, again, as we talk, I do want just to mention these pictures again we're seeing on the right side of our screen I wonder if we could make those full-screen, there we go just so people can get an idea this again on NHK. And you can see that before and after picture. Of course, the building there for reactor three at the bottom of your screen and then at the top, that circled area, you see the damage of the outer structure of that building. But, of course, we're hearing from authorities there that the reactor has not been damaged in that explosion. Going back to Stan, just wanted to explain those pictures to our global audience, Stan. And just go back to trying to let the people of Japan feel some sense of comfort and presumably that is a message that authorities there in Japan are trying to get out to the people there. Is there good reason to feel that as far as radiation levels go? They are trying to say that they're not a health issue at this point.
[Grant:] Yes. They have stressed that all along. They stressed the levels were not at the point they would be harmful but higher than normal. And I suppose when you hear words like that, when you hear about radiation levels being higher than normal, when you hear about potential meltdown or partial meltdown of the reactor, it creates this sense of uncertainty and even fear when you also see a 20 kilometer exclusion zone set up, 200,000 people evacuated from their homes. These images are all alarming. But the government has been very quick to respond to things. There's been a constant flow of information and they have been stressing all along that the radiation levels were not at such an extent where they could create harm. In fact, there was one analogy just yesterday saying that the level of the radiation was not all that much higher that you would get from having an X-ray. And that was a level just outside the plant itself never mind being outside the 20 kilometer exclusion zone. So, they had been very, very vigilant about that, and trying to get the message out that the damage wasn't there, the reactor remains intact, there has been no damage to the structure of the reactor and the explosions which add to that sense of uncertainty, hydrogen-based and in the buildings and not the reactor itself. But, yes, your point is a valid, this uncertainty builds when there are so many images and things are moving so quickly, Rosemary.
[Church:] All right. Thanks so much Stan Grant reporting from Tokyo, Japan. Appreciate that. And, of course, any time there's a crisis involving nuclear power, a lot of ominous words get tossed about. But as James Action from the Carnegie Endowment for Peace points out, words like "meltdown," well, they can be misleading.
[James Action, Carnegie Endowment For Int'l Peace:] A meltdown is an extreme of one end where the entire core melts. Actually, what we've seen at the moment is some partial melting of some of the small parts of the core. Now, that's serious, because any time you have melting, you increase the possibility of radiation being released into the environment. But the term "meltdown" is a very emotive term and is really only appropriate to one extreme scenario. Now, it's the situation we're in at the moment, it's possible but unlikely that a full meltdown could happen. But I don't want to unnecessarily worry people by using that term. I think it's more helpful to speak about core melting line along a spectrum of options.
[Church:] And, of course, at this hour, we don't know how extreme that outcome will be. As Japan's nuclear crisis continues to play out, we asked Dr. Ira Helfand what effects radioactive material could have on nearby on people nearby. Let's listen.
[Dr. Ira Helfand, Physicians For Social Responsibility:] After Chernobyl, there were several thousand cases of thyroid cancer in children exposed to radioactive
[Church:] And for more on what the earthquake has done to Japan's nuclear reactor, you can go to CNN Web site, CNN's Dillon Reynolds has posted answers to a number of your questions. That's at CNN.com. Well, more than 3,000 people have been rescued so far in this disaster. Numerous U.S. rescue and assistance teams arrived in Japan Sunday. The Japanese prime minister says this is his country's worst crisis since World War II.
[Naoto Kan, Japanese Prime Minister:] Please, I ask each one of you, please have such determination and to deepen your bond with your family members, neighbors, and the people in your community, to overcome this crisis, so that Japan can be a better place. We can build together. This is the message I'd like to emphasize to the Japanese people.
[Church:] Japan's prime minister speaking there. And we have been seeing images from northeast Japan for a number of days now. But we continue receiving new video from different perspectives and it continues to shock us. Japanese media say hundreds of people were swept out to sea in Sendai. I want you to take a look at these remarkable images as the alarm sounded and the tsunami hit. Simply terrifying moments for those people on the ground there. And amid the devastation, an incredible story of survival and tragedy. Rescuers spotted this 60-year-old man signaling for help 15 kilometers offshore. He was actually clinging to the roof of his home two days after the tsunami carried him out to sea. And the man says he and his wife fled their house during the earthquake. He returned to get some belongings when the tsunami struck. His wife was lost at sea. Well, Sendai was near the epicenter of the earthquake, as you know. And it took a direct hit from the tsunami. Martin Savidge is there and as he shows us, while rescuers continue searching for survivors, shell-shocked residents have been dealing with frequent tremors and new tsunami warnings.
[Martin Savidge, Cnn Correspondent:] How do you begin to search what looks like the end of the world? In the seaside city of Sendai, emergency teams carefully pick their way through the devastation. Dwarfed by the size of the tsunami's impact, often the teams are trailed by anxious civilians looking for any signs of missing loved ones. I wanted to ask this man who he was looking for, but I never got the chance. [on camera]: So, we were starting to follow this what appears to be a search crew. But now, the problem is that apparently there's been another tsunami warning. So, the crew and everyone else here is being told to get away which is what they're doing. [voice-over]: It's hard to tell how real the threat may be. Nerves in Sendai are very much still on edge. Officials shout their warnings, load up, and head for higher ground. We go in the opposite direction, heading toward the coast, and the closer we get, the more unreal the scenery. The tidal surge rushed inland in some places six miles. Getting around is difficult. Many roads here are impassable. Adding to the apocalyptic scenes, huge fires continue to burn unchecked. Thick black smoke and flames boiled from a refinery. As we videoed the scene, we notice something else. [on camera]: Up until now, we've heard the sirens, we've heard the announcements another tsunami coming, but nobody really seemed to be that anxious. Then, all of a sudden, we notice the water here it's racing out. We're leaving. [voice-over]: Fortunately, the threat never materializes, which is a good thing because Sendai has already seen more than its share of hell and high water. Martin Savidge, CNN, Sendai, Japan.
[Church:] And, of course, the magnitude of Japan's human disaster is simply enormous. But there's also a massive financial impact. The Tokyo Stock Exchange has been quite volatile on this first trading day since Friday's quake and tsunami. Leading Japanese stock index has now recovered a little after skidding nearly 6 percent in early trading. A bit later, we're going to get the very latest on the financial from our Manisha Tank in Hong Kong. Well, as we've been noting, whole towns have been washed away by the tsunami that followed the massive quake. When we return: the story of one such unfortunate town. Do stay with us.