[IMG] Kyushu Electric Power Co. employees take part in an...

Kyushu Electric Power Co. employees take part in an emergency drill at the Sendai nuclear plant's No. 1 reactor in Kagoshima Prefecture on Monday. | KYODO
NATIONAL

Emergency drill held at Sendai reactor ahead of expected restart
JIJI

• JUL 27, 2015

SATSUMASENDAI, KAGOSHIMA PREF. – Kyushu Electric Power Co. began a four-day emergency drill Monday at its Sendai nuclear plant in Kagoshima Prefecture, as the utility gears up to restart the No. 1 reactor as early as mid-August.

The drill is part of the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s safety checks. It assumes scenarios such as water leaking from pipes of the reactor, and a water injection pump ceasing to function properly.

Fifty-two people, including Kyushu Electric employees, will take part in the drill each day. Monday’s exercise was inspected by 15 officials from the NRA.

The drill will not involve people living within 30 km of the power plant. Nuclear disaster response guidelines, which were revised after the disaster at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 plant in 2011, require advance measures be taken for areas within 30 km of a nuclear facility to ensure smooth evacuation in an emergency.
On Monday, the drill was carried out in the main control room for the No. 1 reactor to check the remote control switch for an emergency power system and to examine a system aimed at preventing a hydrogen explosion.

In the 2011 Fukushima No. 1 disaster, hydrogen explosions rocked the buildings housing reactors 1, 3 and 4, while reactors 1, 2 and 3 suffered core meltdowns.
From Tuesday through Thursday, Sendai plant workers will practice measures such as cooling the reactor and lowering the temperature and air pressure inside the containment vessel.

Kyushu Electric finished loading a total of 157 fuel assemblies, or bundles of fuel rods, into the No. 1 reactor earlier this month and has since been checking pipes, fuel control rods and other equipment for possible damage.

All nuclear reactors in Japan remain offline in the wake of the catastrophe at Fukushima No. 1.