A generator that powers pumps broke down, leading to another leak of radioactive water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said.
A generator that powers pumps broke down, leading to another leak of radioactive water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said.
TEPCO said a worker on patrol found that all eight pumping devices installed at a drainage channel on the plant site were not functioning around 8:45 a.m. on April 21. It was raining, and contaminated rainwater spilled over a 70-centimeter-tall barrier and flowed to the ocean, the company said.
The water in the channel contained 110 becquerels per liter of radioactive substances that emit beta rays on April 21, TEPCO said.
No problems were reported with the channel when a worker made the rounds there in the afternoon of the previous day, according to TEPCO.
TEPCO began fully diverting radioactive water from the drainage channel to another conduit leading to a partitioned area in the port on April 17.
The company had noticed that radioactivity levels in the conduit rose every time it rained. But it remained mum on the issue until February.
Local fishermen and others in the Tohoku region have criticized TEPCO for failing to disclose such information.
The conduit is a temporary measure in TEPCO’s plans to eventually route radioactive water in the drainage channel directly to the partitioned area.
However, the plant operator acknowledged that tainted water could still spill over the barrier in the event of heavy rain.