Actress Sandra Bullock has opened her heart and wallet in response to last week’s devastating earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan, killing over 10,000 people.

According to CNN, Bullock sent a $1 million donation to the American Red Cross to help fund disaster relief efforts on the ground.

“This contribution is vitally important as the Red Cross works to provide critical assistance and essential relief items in this time of urgent need for so many people in Japan,” the relief organization said.

It was the largest celebrity donation to be announced since the tsunami struck last weekend. Other celebrities donating to the Japan disaster relief include Charlie Sheen and singers Lady Gaga and Katy Perry.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama said Thursday he was “heartbroken” over the events unfolding in Japan. He offered his full support to the Japanese people and he reiterated his call for U.S. citizens to evacuate to beyond a 50-mile radius of the broken nuclear reactors.

“Whether it’s the West Coast, Hawaii, Alaska or U.S. territories in the Pacific, we do not expect harmful levels of radiation,” he said. “That’s the judgment of our Nuclear Regulatory Commission and many other experts.”

An engineer with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is a loyal member of Sandrarose.com. She left this comment earlier today:

mistea77 says:
To correct an earlier comment, there is a big difference between nuclear weapons and a nuclear reactor used for power generation. The main fission products that have already likely been released from this accident are Cesium and Iodine, which based on my professional judgement as a nuclear engineer, would likely be so diluted by the time they reach the US, there wouldn’t be a concern. Remember also that everyone gets a certain amount of radiation every day from natural sources (the sun, etc), and medical procedures (i.e. x-rays).

The main problem here is that the US government is relying on information from the Japanese electric company (TEPCO) and there have been some doubts about their transparency. Which is why yesterday, the US recommended a wider evacuation area…my suspicion is the US was finally able to get solid information from US experts sent there to assist with the response.

It’s definitely a serious situation with events unfolding and changing by the hour. I just don’t like to see and hear all this fear mongering, that is based on a lack of understanding. There isn’t a need to panic…yet. LOL

March 17, 2011 at 12:26 pm

Photos by AP