The last week in Japan brought approval of a restart for the first of the country's idled reactors, while at Fukushima Daiichi, Tokyo Electric Power Co. dealt with a small fire and a 6.8 magnitude earthquake.
Recent news related to the TEPCO plant blacked out in 2011 includes:
Sendai Nuclear Plant Cleared to Restart
Japanese authorities on Wednesday said Kyushu Electric Power Co.'s reactors in Satsuma-Sendai have cleared safety requirements enacted following the accidents at Fukushima Daiichi. Like all of Japan's power reactors, they are currently offline pending safety upgrades and inspections. Local residents and politicians have also expressed support for the Sendai units' operation, the Asahi Shimbun reported, suggesting they will likely be the first in the country to restart, possibly this fall. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, both are 846 megawatt pressurized water reactors that entered service in the mid-1980s.
Generator Starts Fire
An electrical generator caught fire at Fukushima Daiichi Tuesday morning. According to a TEPCO release, the generator was powering an air conditioner in a shelter for workers building a system to freeze a wall of soil around the plant. A worker put the fire out with an extinguisher. Construction was not delayed, and no one was injured
Plant Weathers Earthquake
Japan experienced another, comparatively small, earthquake off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture Saturday. Workers in low-lying areas retreated to higher ground, although TEPCO reported the 6.8 magnitude temblor did not cause a significant tsunami. Inspections later did not turn up any damage at the plant.