Fukushima I nuclear accidents

The Fukushima I nuclear accidents occurred in Japan during the March 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami. A significant amount of radioactive material was released into the atmosphere and a large number of residents were evacuated from surrounding areas.

There is talk of an apocalypse and I think the word is particularly well chosen... Practically everything is out of control. I cannot exclude the worst in the hours and days to come.

— Guenther Oettinger, European Energy Commissioner, speaking to EU ministers.^[1]

Workers at the plant voluntarily exposed themselves to potentially fatal radiation levels, one of them saying "We are not afraid to die."^[2]

Causes[edit | edit source]

Several factors contributed to the Fukushima I nuclear accidents:

• Poor location close to the sea and very close to sea level. This made certain Japanese plants unprepared for a catastrophic earthquake plus tsunami (in an area where such catastrophes are known to be possible).
• Lack of preparedness of pumps - some pumps had been inoperable for years^{[verification needed]}
• An unexpectedly large earthquake and tsunami - or to be more accurate, an inadequate safety margin.

Notes and references[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

• Nuclear energy

External links[edit | edit source]

• Wikipedia:Fukushima I nuclear accidents
• Wikipedia:Nuclear power in Japan
• Wikipedia:Tokaimura nuclear accident, Japan's worst civilian nuclear radiation accident at the time it occurred on 30 September 1999.

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