May 16 and 17, 2012
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) was already aware in 2006 that the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant may lose power if hit by a massive tsunami, the utility firm admitted on May 15.
According to the operator of the crippled nuclear reactors, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) and the Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization (JNES) launched study meetings in 2006 on the possibilities of nuclear reactors becoming flooded if hit by a tsunami in the wake of the 2004 Sumatra quake and the resultant tsunami that damaged a nuclear reactor in India. TEPCO and other electric companies took part in the meetings as observers.
At the meetings, some projected that if the Fukushima plant were to be hit by a major tsunami, its emergency diesel generators may possibly be under water and unusable.
The NISA advised TEPCO to share this possibility with its executives, but it was only conveyed up to Takekuro Ichiro, then vice president and general manager of the nuclear power and plant siting division.
The meetings also shared the results of a study that pointed out that a quake-triggered tsunami may destroy emergency core cooling systems and diesel generators at nuclear plants in Tomari (Hokkaido Pref.), Onagawa (Miyagi Pref.), Hamaoka (Shizuoka Pref.) and Oi (Fukui Pref).
Parliamentarians and Fukushima Prefectural Assembly members of the Japanese Communist Party had repeatedly warned that a major tsunami would most likely cause devastating damage, particularly at the Fukushima plant.
In 2006, JCP House of Representatives member Yoshii Hidekatsu pointed out in the Diet that following a massive tsunami, nuclear reactors may not be able to secure the amount of seawater necessary for sustained cooling, leading to a core meltdown. He urged the government to take appropriate measures in preparation for the worst-case scenario.
In 2005 and 2007, JCP prefectural committee and prefectural assembly members in Fukushima made representations to TEPCO, warning about the possible danger of a severe accident at local nuclear reactors.
See:
“Tsunamis may prohibit cooling of Japan's N-reactors: JCP Dietmember reveals” (March 2, 2006)
According to the operator of the crippled nuclear reactors, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) and the Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization (JNES) launched study meetings in 2006 on the possibilities of nuclear reactors becoming flooded if hit by a tsunami in the wake of the 2004 Sumatra quake and the resultant tsunami that damaged a nuclear reactor in India. TEPCO and other electric companies took part in the meetings as observers.
At the meetings, some projected that if the Fukushima plant were to be hit by a major tsunami, its emergency diesel generators may possibly be under water and unusable.
The NISA advised TEPCO to share this possibility with its executives, but it was only conveyed up to Takekuro Ichiro, then vice president and general manager of the nuclear power and plant siting division.
The meetings also shared the results of a study that pointed out that a quake-triggered tsunami may destroy emergency core cooling systems and diesel generators at nuclear plants in Tomari (Hokkaido Pref.), Onagawa (Miyagi Pref.), Hamaoka (Shizuoka Pref.) and Oi (Fukui Pref).
Parliamentarians and Fukushima Prefectural Assembly members of the Japanese Communist Party had repeatedly warned that a major tsunami would most likely cause devastating damage, particularly at the Fukushima plant.
In 2006, JCP House of Representatives member Yoshii Hidekatsu pointed out in the Diet that following a massive tsunami, nuclear reactors may not be able to secure the amount of seawater necessary for sustained cooling, leading to a core meltdown. He urged the government to take appropriate measures in preparation for the worst-case scenario.
In 2005 and 2007, JCP prefectural committee and prefectural assembly members in Fukushima made representations to TEPCO, warning about the possible danger of a severe accident at local nuclear reactors.
See:
“Tsunamis may prohibit cooling of Japan's N-reactors: JCP Dietmember reveals” (March 2, 2006)
