Just a glitch?

April 8, 2015

Glitch suspected in abnormally high readings at Fukushima radiation monitoring posts

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150408p2a00m0na010000c.html

Abnormalities have been detected at about 30 monitoring posts set up in Fukushima Prefecture to measure airborne radiation levels, the prefectural government announced on April 7.

Prefectural officials said about 30 of the 77 simple monitoring posts that were set up at the end of March and went into operation in April on a test basis had produced abnormal data. The monitoring posts are located in seven municipalities, including the cities of Minamisoma and Date. Two posts in Minamisoma and Katsurao gave readings that were about 1,000 times higher than normal.

No abnormal readings have been recorded at other prefectural monitoring posts nearby, and prefectural officials suspect a glitch occurred when measurement data was being transferred.

Checks were commissioned after abnormally high readings were detected in two locations in Minamisoma on April 3. A representative of the prefecture's radiation monitoring office commented, "We thought we would make a public announcement after investigating the cause (of the high readings). We should have done so at the time we were first aware of the abnormality."

Meanwhile, Tokyo Electric Power Co. on April 7 announced that a temperature gauge inside the containment vessel of the No. 2 reactor at its crippled Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant had also returned an abnormally high reading.

At 5 a.m. on April 3 the temperature reading was 20.9 degrees, but as of 5 p.m. on April 5 it stood at 88.5 degrees. Another temperature gauge at the No. 2 reactor showed a normal reading, and a representative of the power company said that control of the reactor was not affected.

April 08, 2015(Mainichi Japan)