LAST night, Japanese engineers were fighting to contain a growing nuclear crisis at an earthquake-hit power station in the north of the country.

There have been three explosions and two fires at the Fukushima plant since Friday’s 9.0-magnitude earthquake.

Radiation reached harmful levels, leading Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan to urge 140,000 people living near the plant to seal themselves indoors and fears grew of the worldwide economic impact of the disaster.

So far, 3,300 people are confirmed dead in the earthquake, although the death toll is expected to top 10,000.

Tens of thousands of people are still missing, and there are fears some Britons may be among the dead.

Charlie Wiggins told The Northern Echo how he and his wife, Noriko, fled Sendai, close to the epicentre, and drove through the mountains to safety.

The 33-year-old English teacher from West Auckland, said: “We have been warned there could be a radiation leak but, hopefully, we should be all right – we’ll just ride it out.”

His mother, Erika Lucas, said: “I’m constantly watching the news to see what happens with the power plant. I feel dreadful for those poor people who are closer – it’s frightening how quickly the world can lose control.”

Marc Kemp, a teacher from Darlington, lives 70 miles from the nuclear plant.

He said: “The Japanese government has been very optimistic and is continually reassuring us that things are under control, but they have had fires and explosions, so it is difficult to see how under control that really is.”