Nuclear plant downplayed tsunami risk

Monday, 28 March 2011, 19:56 IST
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Tokyo: In planning their defense against a killer tsunami, the people running Japan's now-hobbled nuclear power plant dismissed important scientific evidence and all but disregarded 3,000 years of geological history. The misplaced confidence displayed by Tokyo Electric Power Co was prompted by a series of overly optimistic assumptions that concluded the Earth couldn't possibly release the level of fury it did two weeks ago, pushing the six-reactor Fukushima Dai-ichi complex to the brink of multiple meltdowns, an AP investigation shows. Instead of the reactors staying dry, as contemplated under the power company's worst-case scenario, the plant was overrun by a torrent of water much higher and stronger than the utility argued could occur, according to an AP analysis of records, documents and statements from researchers, the utility and Japan's national nuclear safety agency.
Source: PTI