TOKYO, March 31 (UPI) -- Operators of Japan's crippled-Fukushima nuclear plant didn't seem adequately prepared to handle big emergencies, an examination of their disaster plan showed.
The Wall Street Journal reported its findings Thursday after examining the disaster-response documents of Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the nuclear plant that has set off Japan's worst nuclear crisis since World War II after being hit by the March 11 9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami.
The Journal, pointing to the inadequacy of the disaster plans, said they make provisions for just one stretcher, one satellite phone and 50 protective suits. In the disaster-readiness plan relating to general preparations, reliance on fax machines is mentioned for communications.
The documents, approved by Japanese regulators, did not give proper guidelines to summon outside help during major crises, such as Tokyo firefighters, U.S. equipment or Japanese security forces, all of which ended up being used in the current crisis, the report said.
"The disaster plan didn't function. It didn't envision something this big," the Journal reported, quoting a former TEPCO official.
TEPCO spokesman Hiro Hasegawa was quoted as saying the plans either complied with or exceeded legal requirements, and proved useful in the current crisis such as emergency water spraying to cool the reactors.
The Journal quoted nuclear-power experts as saying few other operators are better prepared to handle a similar nuclear crisis, with one expert saying the Fukushima incident was a "natural disaster" and hence "qualitatively different."
