Oil spill, small explosion at Japan nuclear plant
Source: Agencies |
June 1, 2011, Wednesday
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AN oil spill and a small explosion have caused limited damage - but no further radiation leaks - at the crippled nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan, the plant operator said yesterday.
Workers at Fukushima Dai-ichi plant found an oil spill in the sea near reactors 5 and 6, which were in shutdown when the earthquake and tsunami struck on March 11, Tokyo Electric Power Company said.
The spill was contained by an oil fence, TEPCO spokesman Taichi Okazaki said.
The explosion workers heard at reactor 4 was likely from a gas tank and did not cause any additional radiation leaks, Okazaki said. The cause was being investigated.
The main problems at Fukushima Dai-ichi involve reactors 1, 2 and 3, where the fuel cores have largely melted. Scientists and government officials say the reactors are short of a full meltdown, in which the fuel breaks through the bottom of the outer container.
Workers have been fighting to get the reactors under control after the tsunami destroyed backup power generators, halting crucial cooling systems that managed the fuel temperature.
In the immediate days after the tsunami, several explosions larger than yesterday's hit the plant and scattered highly radioactive debris and puffs of radioactive particles into the environment. The plant has also leaked tons of radioactive water, which officials are promising to clean up.
TEPCO has promised to bring the plant under control by January, but fears are growing that was too optimistic. TEPCO said two workers might have exceeded a radiation exposure limit this week.
Workers at Fukushima Dai-ichi plant found an oil spill in the sea near reactors 5 and 6, which were in shutdown when the earthquake and tsunami struck on March 11, Tokyo Electric Power Company said.
The spill was contained by an oil fence, TEPCO spokesman Taichi Okazaki said.
The explosion workers heard at reactor 4 was likely from a gas tank and did not cause any additional radiation leaks, Okazaki said. The cause was being investigated.
The main problems at Fukushima Dai-ichi involve reactors 1, 2 and 3, where the fuel cores have largely melted. Scientists and government officials say the reactors are short of a full meltdown, in which the fuel breaks through the bottom of the outer container.
Workers have been fighting to get the reactors under control after the tsunami destroyed backup power generators, halting crucial cooling systems that managed the fuel temperature.
In the immediate days after the tsunami, several explosions larger than yesterday's hit the plant and scattered highly radioactive debris and puffs of radioactive particles into the environment. The plant has also leaked tons of radioactive water, which officials are promising to clean up.
TEPCO has promised to bring the plant under control by January, but fears are growing that was too optimistic. TEPCO said two workers might have exceeded a radiation exposure limit this week.
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