Blasts escalate Japan's nuclear crisis

Blasts escalate Japan's nuclear crisis: "Explosions and a fire at Japan's quake-hit nuclear plant have unleashed dangerous levels of radiation, sparking a collapse on the stock market and panic-buying in supermarkets.

Tokyo stocks, punished on Monday in a frantic sell-off that sent indexes around the world sliding, plummeted another 14 per cent before paring some losses and ending 10.55 per cent down. European and US stocks also fell sharply.

In towns and cities, fearful citizens stripped shelves of food and water, prompting the government to warn that panic-buying could hurt its ability to provide aid to areas devastated by Friday's massive quake and tsunami.
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But scared Tokyo residents filled outbound trains and rushed to shops to stock up on face masks and emergency supplies amid heightening fears of radiation headed their way."

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