Japan conducts tsunami drill at Itaka nuclear plant

Matsuyama/Japan, April 18: A tsunami drill was conducted at Shikoku Electric Power Co's nuclear power plant in Ikata, Ehime Prefecture, on Monday, April 18 in the wake of the nuclear emergency at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant triggered by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

About 60 people including utility employees and prefectural officials participated in the drill at the Ikata nuclear plant's No 3 reactor, which was carried out on the assumption that the 890,000-kilowatt pressurized-light-water reactor had lost all electric power supply as a result of tsunami damage.

The drill confirmed procedures to supply electricity to the reactor from a power-supply vehicle and inject water into the steam generator and spent fuel pool from a fire engine.

Shikoku Electric assumed a tsunami of up to about 2.6 meters at the plant, which is located 10 meters above sea level. The plant can thus withstand a tsunami three times higher than envisaged.

The operator plans to conduct similar drills at the No. 1 and No 2 reactors.

PTI (Kyodo)