Another earthquake in eastern Japan and a damaged spent fuel assembly at unit 4 highlighted the recent news from Fukushima Daiichi.
Developments related to the Tokyo Electric Power Co. plant severely damaged following Japan's 2011 earthquake and tsunami include:
Plant Safe After Small Quake
On Tuesday morning, a 5.4 magnitude earthquake struck the northeastern region of Ibaraki Prefecture. Jiji Press reported that the quake did not cause a tsunami or affect nearby reactors, including those in neighboring Fukushima Prefecture.
Workers Encounter Damaged Fuel Assembly in Unit 4 SFP
On Dec. 27, TEPCO reported that workers removing spent fuel from unit 4 found a fuel assembly that had been damaged. A press release translated from Japanese indicated that the assembly sustained damage to its handle and had what appeared to be a crack in its side from plant operations years earlier. No change in dose was recorded in the spent fuel pool. Workers are inspecting the damage further and plan to set the assembly aside while continuing spent fuel removal.
TEPCO Spins Off Decommissioning to New Company
In late December, TEPCO announced it would set up a subsidiary solely focused on decommissioning Fukushima Daiichi. In a release, TEPCO announced the new company will be headed by former Fukushima Daini executive Naohiro Masuda. It will work closely with the International Research Institute on Nuclear Decommissioning, as well as Japanese regulators.