TEPCO forced to change strategy at plant
Posted by JAC on 3/25/2011, 10:36 pm
Tokyo Electric Power Company has been forced to change its strategy at the quake-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant due to high radiation levels at the site.

The plant's nuclear reactors 1 through 4 have all lost their cooling capabilities as both external and backup power supplies failed after the quake and tsunami.

TEPCO has been working to restore the external power supply while trying to cool the reactors and spent fuel storage pools by using pump trucks to secure water levels.

However, 3 workers were exposed to highly radioactive water in the basement of the turbine building of the No.3 reactor on Thursday. The radiation level there was 200 millisieverts per hour at one time.

This led to a change in plans. In an effort to continually cool the reactors, TEPCO has started to pump fresh water instead of seawater into the No. 1 and No. 3 reactors on Friday.

With this strategy in mind, the company first intended to use the reactors' water pumps. But they were forced to use pump trucks instead from a distance, after high radiation levels were detected near the reactors' pumps.

The company plans to switch on lights in the No.2 reactor's control room on Saturday through an external power supply. Meanwhile, they will also continue to use trucks to pump fresh water into the reactor.

Saturday, March 26, 2011 08:45 +0900 (JST)
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Japan reactor core may be breached - JAC, 3/25/2011, 6:44 am
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