Power recovery operations continue

21 March 2011


Utility TEPCO reported that electricity from newly-laid cables has reached the internal power centres of units 1&2 and 5&6. It also said that cable is being laid to units 3&4 today 21 March.

Reactor-by-reactor, system-by-system summary from JAIF on 21 March
Reactor-by-reactor, system-by-system summary from JAIF on 21 March; yellow indicates abnormal/unstable; red means damaged/nonfunctional/unsafe


TEPCO also said that once power is restored, the main priority will be recovering monitoring systems in the main operating room. With that information, and with information about the electricity functions of each unit, engineers will be able to draw up a plan for recovery of reactor water injection systems, reactor core cooling systems and spent fuel cooling systems.

In the meantime, the reactor cores of damaged units 1, 2 and 3 continue to be cooled by seawater injection. In addition, fire engines have sprayed water into the spent fuel pools of units 2, 3 and 4; doing so for unit 1 is also under consideration, TEPCO said.

Cooling systems of units 5&6, which were shut down at the time of the earthquake and tsunami, are working. Units 5&6 achieved cold shutdown status on 20 March.

Radiation levels measured outside Fukushima Daiichi unit 3 are falling, from 3443 micro Sv/hr at 4pm March 19, to 2126 micro Sv/hr at 9am March 21.

In total 12 fire engines are spraying water to the reactor and spent fuel pool from regional fire departments and the Tokyo Fire Department, including the Koriyama Fire Department, Iwaki Fire Brigade Headquarters, Fire Headquarters of Sukagawa District Wide Area Fire-fighting Association, Yonezawa City Fire Headquarters, Utsunomiya City Fire Headquarters, Fire Headquarters of Aizu-Wakamatsu wide area municipal association, Saitama City Fire Bureau, and Niigata City Fire Bureau.

Two tanks are being delivered to the site to clear debris. The tank's armour protects operators from radiation exposure.


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