Asia-Pacific

Japan declares atomic power emergency

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-03-11 19:57

The Fukushima nuclear plant in Fukushima prefecture in northeastern Japan is pictured in a 2008 file photo. Japan has told the UN nuclear wathchdog that a heightened state of alert has been declared at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant after Friday's major earthquake. [Agencies]

TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan declared a state of atomic power emergency after a massive earthquake struck the country Friday, but no radiation leaks have been detected at or near nuclear power plants, reported Kyodo news agency.

Related readings:  China sends condolences over Japan quake  32 killed in major tsunami after 8.9 Japan quake  Nuclear plants near Japan quake safely shut  Japan super quake, tsunami terrify tremor-prone nation

Fire broke out at the turbine building of Onagawa nuclear power plant in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan following the earthquake that triggered huge tsunami on the coasts of  eastern Japan and some other Asian nations.  

Earlier, Kan said that no problems have occurred so far in Japan's nuclear power stations after the quake.

But Japan's Industry Ministry said the operator of the Fukushima No 1 nuclear plant reported an abnormality Friday following the powerful earthquake which hit a wide area in northeastern Japan including Fukushima Prefecture.

The system to cool reactor cores in case of emergency stopped at the No 1 and No 2 reactors of the plant operated by Tokyo Electric Power Co, Kyodo News quoted the ministry as saying.

The 8.8 magnitude earthquake hit Japan's northeastern Honshu island Friday, killing at least 32 people and injuring numerous others.

According to local media reports, six people died in Ibaraki, Tochigi, Fukushima and Chiba prefectures and numerous others were injured in various areas such as Miyagi Prefecture and central Tokyo.

Kyodo News said at least 10 people were killed by quake- triggered tsunami in Japan's Iwate Prefecture.

A ship with 100 people was washed away by the tsunami, Kyodo news said.

A 10-meter tsunami has washed the port in Sendai city, where many house were flooded with seawater. Meanwhile, the runways of Sendai airport were submerged from tsunami, said local media reports.

After a ministerial meeting, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan called on the public to remain calm in the face of the disaster.

He said the government will make full efforts to deal with the impact of the great quake.

"Our government will make all-out efforts to minimize the damage caused by the earthquake," Kan said at a news conference after the meeting.

An explosion was observed at the Cosmo Oil refinery in Chiba Prefecture following the massive quake.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has upgraded the magnitude of the earthquake from 7.9 to 8.4 and later revised it up to 8.8.

The US Geological Survey reported the earthquake at 8.9 on the Richter scale.

The epicenter the quake, which occurred at 2:46 pm(0546 GMT), was located some 130 km east of the Miyagi Prefecture at a depth of 24.4 km under the sea, said the JMA.

After the great quake occurred, all cabinet ministers were summoned to the prime minister's office and a crisis management team were set up there.

In Tokyo and surrounding areas, up to 4 million homes suffered a power cut.  

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said the government has dispatched Self-Defense Force troops to Miyagi Prefecture. And the defense ministry sent eight air fighters to check damage in the worst-hit areas.

And the Police Agency will dispatch 900 rescuers to the quake- hit areas in northeastern Japan.