Today at approximately 2:46PM, turbines and reactors of Tokyo Electric
Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Unit 1 (Boiling
Water Reactor, rated output 460 Megawatts) and Units 2 and 3 (Boiling
Water Reactor, Rated Output 784 Megawatts) that had been operating at
rated power automatically shutdown due to the Miyagiken-oki Earthquake.
For the above 3 units, off-site power was lost due to malfunction of one
out of two off-site power systems, leading to automatic startup of
emergency diesel generators.
Subsequently, at 3:41PM, emergency diesel generators shutdown due to
malfunction resulting in the complete loss of alternating current for all
three units.
Hence, at 3:42PM, it was decided that a specific incident stipulated in
Article 10, Clause 1 of the Act on Special Measures Concerning Nuclear
Emergency Preparedness has occurred and a "First Level Emergency" was
declared and in accordance with the aforementioned Act, the Minister of
Economy, Trade, and Industry, the Governor of Fukushima Prefecture, the
Mayor of Okuma Town, and the Mayor of Futaba Town along with other
involved organizations were notified of the incident.
TEPCO is taking steps to determine the exact cause behind the shutdown of
the emergency diesel generators and is working towards their restoration.
(already notified)
Subsequently, since the status of reactor water coolant injection could
not be confirmed for the emergency core cooling systems of Units 1 and 2,
at 4:36PM, it was decided that a specific incident stipulated in Article
15, Clause 1 of the Act has occurred.
We have then notified the Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, the
Governor of Fukushima Prefecture, the Mayor of Okuma Town, and the Mayor
of Futaba Town along with other involved organizations of the incident.
Article 15, Clause 1 of the Act was cleared when the reactor water level
monitoring function was restored for Unit 1. However, at 5:07PM, specific
incident stipulated in Article 15, Clause 1 of the Act was applied again
for Unit 1.
