4 Killed in Nuclear Plant accident in Mihama

[Mulboyne]

BBC News reports that the Mihama incident has now resulted in 4 deaths so far.

Accident at Japan nuclear plant
At least four people have been killed in a steam leak at a nuclear power plant in Japan.
Others have been hospitalised with severe burns, after the accident at the Mihama plant in Fukui prefecture.

No radiation is said to have leaked from the plant, which is about 320 kilometres (200 miles) west of Tokyo.

An official from Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency told news agency AFP that "about 10 people suffered burns" from the steam leak.

"Of them, four or five people were rushed to hospital, and some of them are unconscious," he said.

Kansai Electric Power Company, which operates the Mihama plant, said it had stopped power generation at 3:28pm (0628 GMT), and was still investigating the cause of the leak.

"Steam spewed in the turbine building area at the number three nuclear reactor," a spokesman for Kansai Electric Power told the Associated Press news agency.

Japan relies on nuclear power to supply 30% of its electricity.

But a string of safety problems, including an accident in 1999 which killed two workers and affected hundreds of others in Tokaimura, north-east of Tokyo, has undermined public confidence.

Our correspondent in Tokyo, Jonathan Head, says questions will again be raised about the safety of nuclear power in Japan.

Mihama already had a serious accident in 1991, well before the above-mentioned Tokaimura incident
Nuclear incidents in 1991

February 9
Fukui, Japan - A serious accident occurred in the Mihama nuclear power plant. A pipe in the steam generator burst, leaking 55 tonnes of radioactive primary (reactor) coolant water into the secondary steam-generating circuit. Some radioactivity was released to the atmosphere and the plant's emergency corecooling system was required. MITI reported later that the accident was caused by human error, some anti-vibration bars being wrongly installed by workers and sawn off short to make them fit. (Nuclear News, August 1991, The Age, 23/2/91)

And another in 1994 Details Here

Kansai Electric Power Site

The Mihama Power Station is located within the Wakasa Bay Quasi National Park on the Tsuruga Peninsula in Fukui Prefecture which is famous for its sharply indented coastline. The power station has three generating units and two central control rooms and was the first nuclear power station built by Kansai Electric Power Company. Total generating capacity is 1,666 MWe and the plant site area is 520,000 sq. meters. Unit 1 was Japan's first PWR generating unit and it provided nuclear generated electricity to the 1970 Osaka World's Fair.

The power station is located on the west side of Tsuruga Peninsula and faces the Wakasa Bay Quasi-National Park. An access to the power station is provided by the Nyuu Ohashi Bridge over an inlet between the station and the peninsula. Seen from Nyuu Bridge, the power station exhibits attractive and changing views in the four seasons. At some distance to the west of the station is Mikata Goko, a scenic spot with five lakes, where you can enjoy a short sightseeing trip on an excursion boat or driving on the Rainbow Line road.

[kotatsuneko]

just saw that here too:

At least 5 dead at Japan nuke plant

but, pardon my ignorance, how can steam kill 5 people?

there was a bbc docu a few years back about how japans power cos pay the yakuza to pick up tramps or people in debt with no remaining family to perform hazardous work such as cleaning etc at nuclear plants only to die from exposure to radiation afterwards..

[Caustic Saint]

but, pardon my ignorance, how can steam kill 5 people?

By cooking them alive. Steam (as I'm sure you know) is the byproduct of boiling water. Steam under pressure exists at temperatures above 100 degrees Celcius.

Now, blast that at somebody and see what happens....

[kotatsuneko]

um, i guess ... they die?

[GuyJean]

but, pardon my ignorance, how can steam kill 5 people?.

Steam burns are one of most unpleasant. Of course, I lived through mine so I guess it wasn't that bad.

I think they were just trying to beat the Fins:
Full Steam Ahead for Sauna Endurance Contest
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/08/08/odd.sauna.competition.reut/index.html

Leo Pusa, 56, a three times former champion took back the title won by a fellow Finn last year, spending almost 12 minutes in the 110 degrees Celsius (230 degrees Fahrenheit) heat.

The Mihama plant was scheduled to be inspected on the 14th. I bet the workers were spackling cracks and duct-taping elbows. (jk)

GJ

[Caustic Saint]

but, pardon my ignorance, how can steam kill 5 people?.

Steam burns are one of most unpleasant. Of course, I lived through mine so I guess it wasn't that bad.

And they're worse than "plain old" boiling water burns. 100 degree C. water will burn you and run off. Steam will burn you, burn you more as it condenses to 100 degree C. water, then burn you even more as 100 degree C. water, and then run off.

Ouch.

[Taro Toporific]

Two accidents in a day befall Japan nuclear power plants
TOKYO August 9 (Itar-Tass) - At least five people died and several were injured on Monday in a worst accident to ever hit a Japanese nuclear power plant ... A massive steam leak occurred, without radiation emission, at the Mihama nuclear power plant, Fukui prefecture, in a turbine area of No.3 reactor
A fire broke out later in the day at a nuclear power plant in Shimane prefecture on Honshu island.
The news agency Kyodo Tsushin said the fire occurred in a waste disposal room near No.2 reactor.

[Mulboyne]

there was a bbc docu a few years back about how japans power cos pay the yakuza to pick up tramps or people in debt with no remaining family to perform hazardous work such as cleaning etc at nuclear plants only to die from exposure to radiation afterwards..

I know the guy who made that documentary. The plants are obliged to keep track of who is involved with cleaning to avoid anyone getting overexposed but, needless to say, the recruitment process meant that such life-saving niceties are overlooked.

I'm not opposed to nuclear energy but I'm horrified at the criminal way this industry is run in Japan. The pressure group Mihama-no-kai has some good insights on their site here (Japanese Only)

Basically, they say that workers were moving equipment in preparation for the regular inspection which Taro mentioned in his post. Since the inspection had not officially started, they were doing this work while the reactor was running. If they waited to move the machinery until the reactor was shut down, they would "waste" several days. This work should never be carried out in a hot environment.

Greenpeace coverage of Mihama

Japan's nuclear reactors are ageing - many are almost 30 years old. Rather than increasing safety measure and closing old reactors the government is doing the exact opposite - reducing regulation of the industry. As nuclear power is so expensive many of the generating companies have huge debts and have cut plant safety measures to save money.

[djgizmoe]

Yeah, I visited Fukui during the summer of 2000, and swimming there, I noticed that the ocean seemed incredibly warm. "Oh yeah, that's cause of the nuclear plant around the bend." Doh!
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040810/ap_on_re_as/japan_nuclear_accident&cid=516&ncid=716

[Taro Toporific]

I know the guy who made that [BBC] documentary....

I've always wondered if that BBC documentary's term for the disposable employees, "Nuclear Gypsies" is a back translation of a Japanese term for the cursed souls exploited by the Japanese nuke industry.

Anyway, here's the picture of the (AP / Monday, Aug. 9, 2004) destroyed pipe of Mihama Nuclear Power Plant ..The leak was caused by a lack of cooling water in the reactor's turbine, according to a spokesman for plant operator Kansai Electric Power.

[Taro Toporific]

Yeah, I visited Fukui during the summer of 2000, and swimming there, I noticed that the ocean seemed incredibly warm.

Summer holiday makers enjoy sea bathing
10 Aug 2004 GittyImmages.com

[Mulboyne]

[Bongo]

[Mulboyne]

Mihama-no-kai claim that the KEPCO inspection schedule has been so curtailed that it would take 40 years before all relevant piping was inspected. The pipes which failed, they say, had not been inspected once in 28 years. A similar fault in July did not accelerate KEPCO's plans. Police are now looking at whether there is a case for criminal responsibilty.

[Bongo]

Mihama-no-kai claim that the KEPCO inspection schedule has been so curtailed that it would take 40 years before all relevant piping was inspected. The pipes which failed, they say, had not been inspected once in 28 years. A similar fault in July did not accelerate KEPCO's plans. Police are now looking at whether there is a case for criminal responsibilty.

Yeah, just think what would have gone down had it been the primary cooling pipe and not the secondary cooling pipe that burst.
Man, they say it was only 1.4mm thick and orignally was 1 centimeter in thickness.

[GuyJean]

The Mihama plant was scheduled to be inspected on the 14th. I bet the workers were spackling cracks and duct-taping elbows. (jk)

Man, I was just kidding; therefore the '(jk)'.. Spackle and duct-tape; that's all you need for nuclear safety.. TIJ. The only way.

GJ

[Taro Toporific]

Some recent nuclear accidents in Japan
InfoAboutNetwork.com Aug 10
There have been many recent nuclear accidents that have been occuring in Japa, some include one in 1995, 1997, 1999, 2002, and two in 2004.

- December 1995: Sodium leaked in a secondary cooling system at the Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor operated by the state-run Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corp., or Donen....

- March 1997: At least 37 workers were exposed ...at Donen in Tokaimura, northeast of Tokyo....

- September 1999: Two workers were killed in a radiation leak at a fuel-reprocessing plant in Tokaimura ...

- February 2002: Two workers were exposed... at Onagawa Nuclear Power Station in northern Japan.

- February 2004: Eight workers were exposed to low-level radiation at another power plant in Tsuruga, western Japan...

- Aug. 9, 2004: A cooling pipe at a power plant in Mihama burst...

[Taro Toporific]

Here's what James Brooke at the New York Times is saying...

Rust and Neglect Cited at Japan Atom Plant
New York Times (International) 8PM 10 AugA steam pipe that blew out had not been inspected in 28 years and had corroded to a thickness little greater than metal foil.
..."To put it bluntly, it was extremely thin," Shoichi Nakagawa, Japan's minister of the economy, trade and industry, said Tuesday after touring the power plant, in Mihama, about 200 miles west of here. "It looked terrible, even in the layman's view."
Although the carbon steel pipe carried 300-degree steam at high pressure, it had not been inspected since the power plant opened in 1976.

[Mulboyne]

J-Power Plans to Sell 371 Bln Yen of Shares in IPO

Aug. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Electric Power Development Co. [J-Power], Japan's only nationwide electricity producer, plans to sell as much as 371 billion yen ($3.4 billion) of stock in the nation's biggest initial public offering in six years.
...J-Power, founded in 1952, sells electricity to regional utilities such as Tokyo Electric and Kansai Electric Power Co., and its other shareholders, to ease shortages. It produces 7 percent of electricity in Japan.
...The power producer is also diversifying its power generation sources at home. J-Power plans to build from August 2006 a 1,383- megawatt nuclear plant in Aomori prefecture, northern Japan Operations at the Oma plant are expected to start in 2012.

J-Power Web Site

Preventing global warming is a top management priority for J-POWER, which is why we are so proactive in establishing and implementing policies to address this issue.
...Currently, nuclear power accounts for about one third of all electricity generated in Japan. Nuclear power generation has many excellent features and plays an important role in ensuring a stable supply of electric power. In addition to stable fuel supply and prices, it is almost entirely free of carbon dioxide emissions.

[GuyJean]

Police Search Japan Nuclear plant
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/09/04/japan.nuclear.reut/index.html

Five workers died after super-hot non-radioactive steam gushed from a ruptured pipe at the company's Mihama nuclear plant, 320 kilometer (200 miles) west of Tokyo, in the deadliest accident in Japanese nuclear industry on August 9.

Shuichi Nosaka, a police official at the Tsuruga police station in Fukui Prefecture where the plant is located, told Reuters about 150 police had begun the search on suspicion that negligence in maintenance and repairs had led to the accident.

The police will be able to determine negligence at a nuclear power plant?..

GJ

[Mulboyne]

[Mulboyne]

Kyodo: Tokyo Electric to shut down another reactor due to water leakage

Tokyo Electric Power Co. decided Wednesday to shut down another reactor in Fukushima Prefecture as a water leak has been found in the facility, company officials said. The company will shut down the No. 4 reactor of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant following its announcement earlier in the day that it will suspend operations at its No. 2 nuclear reactor at the plant where a radioactive water leak was discovered.

[FG Lurker]

Japan's Nuclear Nightmare
Eric Johnson
ZNet, January 17, 2005

[...]

At 15:22 on August 9th, a fire alarm sounded within the building at the Mihama No. 3 plant that housed the turbine. A pipe in the secondary coolant system had ruptured, and an estimated 800 tons of scalding water 140 degrees Celsius was released, scalding the five workers of Nihon Arm, a KEPCO sub-contractor.

As it turned out, the pipe had never been checked during the 28 years of the plant's operation. When originally installed, it had been 10 mm thick. But after nearly three decades, it had worn down to 1 mm. [...]

(Full and rather long article)

The article is long but it covers a lot of the history of Japan's nuclear power program. An interesting read.

[Mulboyne]

"Nuclear Ginza" is also a translation of "Genpatsu Ginza" which refers to the problem of the concentration of power plants - especially on earthquake fault lines.

Asahi: NUCLEAR NIGHTMARE:Calculating disaster

When the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors at the Hamaoka nuclear plant in Omaezaki, Shizuoka Prefecture, were built in the 1970s, it was not known that a major earthquake might hit directly under the site. Now it is. In fact, there's an 84 percent probability that a Tokai-region earthquake measuring 8 on the Richter scale could strike there during the next 30 years, scientists say. Incredible though it may seem, the Chubu Electric Power Co. went ahead and built three more reactors at the Hamaoka plant even though officials by then were aware of the potential hazard...Current quake-resistant guidelines for nuclear plants were compiled in 1978. After the Great Hanshin Earthquake hit in 1995, many experts pleaded for revisions that took into account the latest knowledge about earthquakes. Already a decade has passed since the Kobe temblor that left more than 6,400 people dead-and nothing has been done to improve safety standards for nuclear plants.

[Captain Japan]

Blatant safety violations cited at Kansai Electric nuke plants
Asahi

Kansai Electric Power Co., under fire for the nation's deadliest accident at a nuclear facility, failed to meet technical safety standards for piping in 78 cases at its nuclear plants, a government inspection report showed Thursday.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency report said 46 of those 78 cases since fiscal 1992 involved suspected violations of the Electric Utility Law. Eleven of them were blatant.

Pipe replacements were repeatedly postponed, despite the workers' knowledge that the pipes had weakened because of corrosion, the report said.

In fact, Kansai Electric did not replace the pipes even after its own inspections found places eroded beyond the legal standards, the report said. The utility was apparently concerned about the costs of lengthy operating stoppages to replace the pipes.

The agency submitted its report Thursday to an accident investigation panel of the Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and Energy....the rest...

[Mulboyne]

The Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan



Ironically, if you click on the "Virtual Tour to Nuclear Facilities", the following message pops up:

Sorry, now in maintenance.

[GuyJean]

Ironically, if you click on the "Virtual Tour to Nuclear Facilities", the following message pops up:

Sorry, now in maintenance.

Great find!

GJ

[Mulboyne]

We can all relax now.

IHT: Japan to upgrade earthquake safety standards at nuclear plants

TOKYO Japan on Tuesday decided to enhance earthquake safety standards at nuclear power plants and other nuclear-related facilities to prepare plant sites for stronger quakes, an official said. The government will soon ask the operators of nuclear power plants across the country to consider the possibility of a quake stronger than a magnitude 6.5 occurring directly above its epicenter, said Dai Miyamoto of the Nuclear Safety Commission. The upper-limit figure of a magnitude 6.5 quake was set in 1981. "The new guidelines are designed to upgrade earthquake safety standards at nuclear power plants," Miyamoto said...more...