>Light winds, snow forecast near Japan nuclear plant(Video)

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Rain or snow are forecast for the area around Japan’s crippled nuclear reactor, over which a light wind is expected to blow from the southeast and out over parts of the country’s northern region, the weather agency said on Tuesday.

The weather is important for gauging if traces of radiation leaking from the plant will reach heavily populated areas, enter the food chain, or blow out over the ocean.

The damaged Fukushima Daiichi plant, run by Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), is about 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo.

Some 3-8 mm (0.1-0.3 inch) of rain or snow are forecast to fall over the area in the next 24 hours.

Three hundred engineers, in addition to military, police and fire department personnel, have been battling inside the danger zone to try to cool down the reactors.

Winds near the plant will blow at a speed as fast as 4 meters (13 feet) per second, the Meteorological Agency in Fukushima said, forecasting that the wind could begin blowing from the west from the evening.

Traces of radiation exceeding national safety standards have so far been found in milk and vegetables from areas around the plant.

Tiny levels of radioactive iodine have also been found in tap water in Tokyo, one of the world’s largest cities, and the plant’s operator said on Tuesday traces of radioactive substances had been found in the Pacific Ocean.

Many tourists and expatriates have already left Japan and many residents are staying indoors.