Japan resumes dousing overheating atomic plant
TOKYO—Japan resumed throwing water at a quake-hit nuclear plant early Saturday to avert a catastrophe in what the head of the UN International Atomic Energy Agency called “a race against time”.
Five specially equipped fire trucks from the Tokyo Fire Department doused seawater in a 20-minute operation to cool overheating fuel rods at the Fukushima No.1 power station, a department official said.
On Friday, six fire trucks from the Self-Defence Forces had unleashed some 50 tonnes of seawater on one of the troubled reactors at the plant, located 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of Tokyo.
The Tokyo Fire Department trucks, including a vehicle which can pour water from a height of over 20 metres (65 feet), began the latest operation at 0:30 am (1530 GMT Friday), the official said.
The official said that the department was to conduct another operation at noon Saturday.
