A court ruling against restarting a Japanese nuclear plant and the disclosure that most employees briefly evacuated Fukushima Daiichi at the height of the crisis were among the headlines from Japan this week.
Recent developments related to the Tokyo Electric Power Co. reactors severely damaged in 2011 include:
Court Rules Against Ohi Restart
A judge dealt a setback to Japan's nuclear industry this week, siding with opponents of the Ohi nuclear plant seeking to prevent it from restarting. The ruling by the Fukui District Court Wednesday could prevent units 3 and 4 at the plant from returning to service. Like all Japanese reactors, they are offline pending the results of inspections under a new regulatory regime put in place after the Fukushima accidents. Kyodo reported that Kansai Electric Power Co. plans to appeal the decision, which could also be superseded if the Nuclear Regulation Authority authorizes the units to restart before the ruling is finalized. Shortly after the district court's decision, Japan's industry minister reiterated his government's support for restarting the country's reactors.
All but 69 Workers Retreated After Unit 2 Explosion
About 650 of 720 Fukushima Daiichi personnel temporarily evacuated plant grounds early in the crisis, despite an order to stay close at hand. Former plant manager Masao Yoshida told government investigators he ordered workers to evacuate to areas of the plant with lower radiation levels after an explosion and a sudden drop in internal pressure at unit 2 on the morning of March 15, 2011. In testimony recently obtained by the Asahi Shimbun, Yoshida recounted how workers instead retreated to the Fukushima Daiini plant 10 kilometers away and returned about five hours later. In their absence, 69 workers grappled with a hydrogen fire at unit 4 and some of the highest radiation levels of the crisis. TEPCO disputed the assertion that the evacuated workers disobeyed orders, though, arguing that their instructions did not rule out evacuating to the Daiini plant if radiation levels at Daiichi were too high.