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History repeats? Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant evacuated after Russia’s 8.8 magnitude mega quake

History repeats? Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant evacuated after Russia’s 8.8 magnitude mega quake

File photos: Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma Photograph: (Combination created using images from AFP)

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"We have evacuated all workers and employees" at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, a spokeswoman for plant operator TEPCO told news agencies, adding that no "abnormality" had been observed.

Russia's 8.8 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday (Jul 30) triggered an emergency evacuation at the Fukushima nuclear plant in northeast Japan. As per reports, all workers of the stricken nuclear plant were evacuated to avoid a 2011-style meltdown of the facility. "We have evacuated all workers and employees" at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, a spokeswoman for plant operator TEPCO told news agencies, adding that no "abnormality" had been observed.

What happened in 2011?

In 2011, in the aftermath of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma suffered a massive electrical grid failure, and damage was reported at nearly all the power plant's backup energy sources. After the reactors shut down, crews couldn't cool them properly. That failure broke the containment systems and let radioactive material escape into the environment.

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Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency later rated the disaster a level seven — the highest on the International Nuclear Event Scale — based on findings from the Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization. It remains the most serious nuclear accident since Chernobyl in 1986, which was also classified at level seven.

Fukushima debris removal delayed?

This comes just a day after Tepco announced that a massive operation to remove hundreds of tonnes of radioactive debris from the Fukushima nuclear plant has been delayed until at least 2037. Approximately 880 tonnes of hazardous materials from the 2011 nuclear disaster are still in the power station. Preparation work needed to start the retrieval is expected to take "12 to 15" years from now, official Akira Ono told reporters. This means the earliest they can embark on the removal is now 2037.

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Russia's mega earthquake

Russia on Wednesday (Jul 30) suffered a massive 8.7 earthquake which left people shaken and triggered tsunami warnings in the nation, along with Japan and the United States. The epicentre of this strong quake, as per the United States Geological Survey (USGS) was located 133 km southeast of Petropavlovsk‑Kamchatsky in Russia, at a depth of 74 km. The mega-quake, as per the regional seismic monitoring service, was the region's strongest since 1952. It warned that aftershocks of up to 7.5 magnitude were possible. "The strongest earthquake since 1952 has just occurred in the Kamchatka seismic zone ...Given the scale of the event, strong aftershocks with a magnitude of up to 7.5 should be expected," Kamchatka's geophysical service said on Telegram.

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Moohita Kaur Garg

Moohita Kaur Garg is a journalist and Senior Sub-Editor at WION News with five years of experience covering the volatile intersections of geopolitics and global security. She has e...Read More