US, Japan drop 2014 Okinawa base-transfer deadline

A US Air Force F-22 fighter jet (front) taxis past a C17 aircraft after landing at Kadena US Air Force Base on Japan’s island of Okinawa in this file photo of May 30, 2009. The US and Japan say they will drop the 2014 Okinawa base-transfer deadline


The United States and Japan today agreed to drop a 2014 deadline for building a new airstrip on Okinawa and transferring US Marines from that Japanese island to Guam, top officials said in a statement.

“Completion of the FRF (Futenma Replacement Facility) and the Marine relocation will not meet the previously targeted date of 2014,” the two allies said in a statement following Cabinet-level talks in Washington.

They vowed to complete the projects “at the earliest possible date after 2014.”

Tokyo launches large-scale radiation monitoring after Fukushima

A radiation monitor indicates 0.82 microsieverts per hour at a checkpoint to the restricted zone of a 20km radius around the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, in Kawauchi village, about 20 km (12 miles) from the plant in Fukushima ...
China's nuclear regulators have given the country's reactors a clean bill of health following inspections ordered after the disaster at Japan's tsunami-struck Fukushima Dai-ichi facility. Inspections have been completed on all 13 of ...

Japan earthquake - IAEA: Japan underestimated nuclear plant tsunami risk

Shares of Tokyo Electric Power Co fell to 289 yen on Thursday, the lowest level since it was listed on the stock exchange, coming under increasing pressure from selling by retail investors.

Radioactive water accumulating in Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s crippled Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant is set to start overflowing from storage trenches in five days, data provided by the company show. ...

The radiation from Japan's crippled Fukushima Daiichi reactors poisoned farmlands, contaminated the sea, and sent invisible mists of radiation wafting around the world. The latest – and it's just the latest – atomic accident has raised new ...

UN report puts focus on Japan nuclear plant flaws

International Atomic Energy Agency fact-finding mission team leader and Britian’s top nuclear safety official Mike Weightman answers questions from reporters after a meeting with Goshi Hosono, special adviser to Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan in Tokyo on June 1, 2011.

Less than a week after touring the radioactive rubble of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, a team of international safety inspectors today plans to hand Japan’s government a preliminary review of what triggered the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

Radiation found in seaweed near crippled Japan plant

An aerial view of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station is seen in this file photo taken on March 24, 2011.

Seaweed collected from the coast near Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant and sewage in Tokyo have shown elevated levels of radiation, according to data released by an environmental group and government officials today.

The findings, released separately by Greenpeace and Tokyo government officials, underline the difficulty of containing the water-borne spread of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant, which was seriously damaged by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami, triggering a still-unfolding crisis.

Operator Tokyo Electric Power has poured massive amounts of water on four of the reactors at the plant to cool the fuel they contain, but struggled to keep the radioactive water from leaking out to the sea.

Environmental critics have also raised worries about contaminated water seeping into the water table.

Japan may close one nuclear plant, tiny radiation leak at another

Japan Atomic Power Co.’s Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant No.2 reactor is seen in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, in this March 14, 2010 file photo taken by Kyodo.


Japan today announced a tiny radiation leak at a nuclear reactor on its west coast, while another power company is expected to close a nuclear plant in central Japan due to its vulnerability to a major quake.

Electricity wholesaler Japan Atomic Power said it had stopped the leak after a minute amount of radiation was found in gas that escaped from the Tsuruga nuclear plant yesterday. It said there had been no impact on the environment.

Japan Atomic said it was investigating the cause of the leak, which is bound to increase public unease over the troubled nuclear industry in the wake of the massive earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima nuclear facility in March.

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Japan to stop pumping radioactive water in sea

Kaichiro Saito, CEO of Kakuboshi Co, a sake maker since 1902, checks damages at his sake brewery in Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture


Japan expects to stop pumping radioactive water into the sea from a crippled nuclear plant today, a day after China expressed concern at the action, reflecting growing international unease over the month-long nuclear crisis.

“The emptying out of the relatively low radiation water is expected to finish tomorrow,” a Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) official said late yesterday.

Tepco is struggling to contain the worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl, with its engineers pumping low-level radioactive seawater, used to cool overheated fuel rods, back into the sea for the past five days due to a lack of storage capacity.

Engineers say they are far from in control of the damaged reactors and it could take months to stabilise them and years to clear up the toxic mess left behind.

Japan's TEPCO puts out fire at damaged nuke plant

Crews are said to be fighting a fire at Fukushima's No. 4 reactor (AFP/Jiji Press) A fresh fire broke out at Japan's stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant this morning, while a strong aftershock hit the east of the country. The operator of Japan's crippled nuclear power plant says workers discovered a small fire near a reactor building at its tsunami-stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi complex but it was extinguished quickly.

Japan set to extend nuclear evacuation zone

Anti-nuclear protesters shout slogans during a march in front of Tokyo Electric Power Co’s headquarters in Tokyo, April 10, 2011.

A protester wearing a mask reading “Stop! Genpatsu”, or stop nuclear power plant, as she marches in Tokyo.

Japan plans to extend the evacuation zone around its crippled nuclear plant because of high radiation levels, local media reported today, with engineers no closer to regaining control of six reactors hit by a giant tsunami one month ago.

Concern at Japan’s inability to contain its nuclear crisis, caused by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami, is mounting, with Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s ruling party suffering embarrassing losses in local elections yesterday, and neighbouring China and South Korea voicing criticism.

Engineers at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi plant north of Tokyo said yesterday that they were no closer to restoring the plant’s cooling system, which is critical if overheated fuel rods are to be cooled and the six reactors brought under control.

They are hoping to stop pumping radioactive water into the ocean today, days later than planned.

Four weeks after the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl a quarter of a century ago, the government was moving to extend the 20km evacuation zone due to high levels of radiation, the Asahi newspaper reported.

The government has so far refused to widen the zone, despite being urged to by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)and countries such as the United States and Australia advising its citizens to stay 80km away from the plant.

The Asahi said the government would extend the zone to 30km in certain areas, depending on wind direction, and residents would be given a week to prepare for evacuation.

The Japan Times said authorities would soon forcibly close the 20km zone, stopping people returning to their shattered homes to pick through the rubble for belongings.

Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato criticised the evacuation policy, saying residents in a 20-30km radius were initially told to stay indoors and then advised to evacuate voluntarily.

“Residents in the 20-30km radius were really confused about what to do.” Sato told NHK television yesterday.

One month to the day after Japan was devastated by the tsunami that left 25,000 dead, ANOTHER earthquake strikes off the SAME coast

* Tremors struck as country prepared to remember the dead
* Crippled nuclear plant evacuated after latest seismic activity
* Government pledges to do all it can to help survivors
* Frustrations increasing among residents of Fukushima exclusion zone
* Nuclear officials admit they cannot offer end date for plant crisis
* Evacuation zone around stricken plant could be expanded due to accumulation of radiation

A tsunami warning was issued for an hour after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit Iwaki in Fukushima province, a month after a massive earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan's north-east coast.

The latest quake came as sombre ceremonies were planned today to mark one month passing since the tragedy.

And there are fears it could have catastrophic ramifications for the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.

The plant has since been evacuated, although its operator said no nuclear damage has been reported after this latest burst of seismic activity.

 Silent reflection: Japan's Ground Self-Defence Force members in a moment of silence at 2:46 pm, exactly a month after a massive earthquake struck the area in Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture

 Police officers in protective suits search for bodies at a destroyed area, about 18km from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power station

 Memorial: A group of Japanese Shinto priests (on the left) and Buddhist monks at Yugihama Beach during a pray for Japan memorial event in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture

 Police officers in protective suits observe a moment of silence for those who were killed by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, as they search for bodies at a destroyed area in Minamisoma, Fukushima prefecture

 Buddhist monks pray in an area destroyed by tsunami in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, northern Japan, one month to the day after an earthquake and tsunami devastated the city

Japan says economy in ‘severe’ condition after disaster

Japan said today that its economy was in a severe condition following last month’s triple disaster triggered by one of the biggest earthquakes on record, with sentiment in its service sector registering the sharpest fall ever.

Underlining the ferocity of the damage to the economy from the disaster, in which a nuclear power plant was crippled by the giant tsunami following the March 11 quake, the government also asked major companies to cut electricity use in the peak summer months by up to a quarter.

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Tsunami dog found alive and well in Japan after THREE WEEKS adrift at sea on a floating house

It appears almost too good to be true, but this little dog has been found alive and well adrift at sea, an astonishing three weeks after the tsunami that devastated Japan.

Members of the Japan Coast Guard came across the dog on Friday as they were conducting an aerial search of the area.

Against all the odds, the dog appears to have survived by living in a partially submerged house that had been swept out to sea.

Against all odds: The dog appears to have survived by clinging to a house that had been swept away by the massive earthquake and tsunami that struck on March 11

A fishy tale: It seems almost too good to be true, but this little dog seems to have survived against all odds and was discovered by coastguards floating on a raft at sea

Safe and hound: A member of the Japan Coast Guard comforts the dog that seems to have survived an amazing three weeks at sea following the devastating tsunami

With mops, cranes and immense courage, Japan picks up the pieces and begins the long, slow process of rebuilding

For days after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami which obliterated the north-east Japanese coast, the people were simply shellshocked.

There followed a lot of suffering, bereavement in horrific measures and the realisation that for the lucky survivors life would never be the same again.

But slowly - despite thousands of refugees living out of cardboard boxes and with fears of radiation ever-present - the Japanese are beginning to swing into action.

Firstly, there is an enormous amount of mopping and cleaning to be done, and how some of the ships, cars, houses, mangled steel and general detritus will be removed is anyone's guess, but construction is occurring if only on a small scale.

The stoic Japanese have got a mammoth job in front of them, but some of them can glimpse the light at the end of the tunnel, even if it appears very dim to the rest of us.

 Volunteer workers clear the mud on in Matsushima, Miyagi

 The lights are on and there's someone home: Lights from vehicles are caught in a long exposure in Yamada where a bedroom window light shows signs of life

The buildings represent a new beginning for the local people

A set of 36 houses are being built in the grounds of a junior high school Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture

People shift mud and debris from a boutique at Kamaishi in Iwate prefecture

Sailors from Navy Misawa sailors are assisting with clean up in the tsunami-damaged city of Hachinohe

Students and U.S. soldiers mop up in a high school gymnasium in Ishinomaki

A U.S. Marine teams up with Japanese soldiers in cleaning up the mud-covered floor of a classroom at the devastated city of Ishinomaki

Marines team up with Japanese soldiers and a school official in cleaning up the mud-covered floor of an auditorium

Desperate conditions of the Fukushima Fifty: How Japan's selfless heroes shun sleep, food and water as they battle to tame the nuclear monster

* Few drivers prepared to deliver vital supplies to Fukushima Fifty
* Men survive on crackers for breakfast and a can of meat for dinner
* Water is so scarce they wash hands in alcohol
* They sleep on lead-lined floor just 300 yards from the leaking plant
* Masks worn at all times, even to sleep
* Men's bedtime ritual is a synchronised clap and shout of 'Let's do our best'

They sleep - or at least try to - on a lead-lined floor just 300 yards from the leaking Fukushima nuclear power plant, huddling under a single blanket and surviving on tiny amounts of food and water.

The conditions are virtually intolerable, yet these are the men who hold much of Japan's immediate future in their hands, for if they fail to heal the crippled plant experts fear dangerous levels of radiation will pour out into the atmosphere and continue to spill into the sea.

They need more sleep, more warmth, more food, more water but finding drivers brave enough to bring in the daily necessities has become a hit and miss affair - and helicopters cannot be used because of the high levels of radiation around the nuclear complex.

Selfless: When at work, they breathe through respirators and dress in white protective clothing, which is not foolproof against some elements of the radiation

Covered up: Concerned about contamination in the air, the room cannot be ventilated and the workers must wear masks at all times, even indoors

Battle: They need more sleep, more warmth, more food, more water but finding drivers brave enough to bring in the daily necessities has become a hit and miss affair

Brave: They were known as the Fukushima 50 - but since then the numbers have swelled to between 270 and 580 depending on the stresses each man can endure

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Japan PM visit tsunami-devastated village, enters nuke zone

 Japan’s Prime Minister Naoto Kan (centre) addresses reporters during his visit to a shelter for evacuees in Rikuzentakata,

Japan’s prime minister made his first visit to the country’s tsunami-devastated region today and entered a nuclear exclusion zone to meet workers grappling to end the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan spoke with refugees living in a makeshift camp in the fishing village of Rikuzentakata, decimated by the tsunamis which struck on March 11 when Japan was rocked by a massive earthquake, leaving 28,000 dead and missing.

“It will be kind of a long battle, but the government will be working hard together with you until the end. I want everyone to do their best, too,” Kan told one survivor in a school that was now an evacuation shelter.

Despite its tsunami-seawalls, Rikuzentaka was flattened into a wasteland of mud and debris and most of its 23,000 population killed or injured, many swept away by the waves.

Japan raps nuclear operator over radiation mistake

Mistaken radiation readings given out by the operator of Japan’s cripp8

led nuclear plant were “absolutely unforgivable,” the government’s chief spokesman said today, as work to prevent a catastrophic meltdown faced fresh hurdles.

Engineers have been battling to control the six-reactor Fukushima complex since it was damaged by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami that also left more than 27,000 people dead or missing across Japan’s devastated northeast.

Fires, explosions, and radiation leaks have repeatedly forced them to suspend work, including yesterday when radiation levels spiked to 100,000 times above normal. Tokyo Electric Power Co, the plant operator, had earlier said it was 10 million times the normal.

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Highly radioactive water has leaked from a reactor at Japan's crippled nuclear complex, the plant's operator said on Monday, while environmental group Greenpeace said it had detected high levels of ...