Japan Press Weekly

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2013 March 20 - 26 [NUCLEAR CRISIS]

Rat is cause of blackout at Fukushima nuclear power plant

An electrocuted rat reportedly caused the power outage at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant on March 18, disabling the cooling system for spent fuel pools for up to 29 hours.

Spent nuclear fuel releases decaying heat. If not cooled for an adequate period of time, the fuel could melt and lead to the discharge of radioactive materials.

The halt to the cooling system at Nos. 1, 3, and 4 reactors that lasted as long as 29 hours occurred due to a short circuit in a temporarily-installed switchboard after a rodent got into the board.

The switchboard in question has been used as a makeshift board on the back of a truck in an outdoor location since the Fukushima nuclear accident two years ago. The Fukushima plant operator has, however, continued to use this makeshift equipment without considering counter-blackout measures.

The stoppage of the cooling system caused by the electricity failure is showing again that the Fukushima crisis is far from under control. Not stopgap measures but efforts aimed at decommissioning the reactors are what is needed.