The nuclear plant was able to handle the initial earthquake. When the tsunami hit, however, water breached the sea protections near the reactors and knocked out power. Lacking the power to properly turn off the reactors, workers could not prevent a meltdown. As a result, an explosion occurred, releasing radioactive materials and forcing an evacuation of the area. The next step was to put teams together to clean up the reactor, filter the contaminated water near the reactor, and try to seal the radioactive material from causing further contamination.
The many, small events move the most material. As rocks move to streams in many places, such as Pennsylvania, the slow and steady motions are more important than the few dramatic events.
