Akhir 19, 1432 H/March 24, 2011, SPA -- Two workers were hospitalized Thursday after they were exposed to radiation at a stricken nuclear power plant in north- eastern Japan, the government said, according to dpa. The two workers were diagnosed as having sustained beta ray radiation burn injuries to their legs and would be sent to the National Institute of Radiological Sciences in Chiba Prefecture, the government's nuclear safety commission said. Their radiation exposure was believed to have been at levels amounting to 173 to 180 millisieverts. The two were part of a three-man team were working to restore cooling functions at the reactor 3 building at Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant, whose power was knocked out by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami on March 11, the commission said. The injuries were caused by direct exposure to beta rays. There was also the possibility that radiation-contaminated water might have seeped through radiation protective garments, Kyodo News reported citing the operator of the plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), said. The radiation exposure prompted some workers at the reactor building to suspend their work. High levels of radiation hampered workers maneuvering toward the stabilization of the plant, said Hidehiko Nishiyama, a spokesman for the commission. "The work is now the struggle against" high levels of radiation, Nishiyama said. "The work should be done rapidly while we ensure workers' safety." On Wednesday, dark smoke from the reactor building disrupted efforts to restore power and key cooling functions. The commission confirmed that the smoke stopped early Thursday, but said the cause of the smoke was unknown. External power was connected to all six reactors at the plant late Tuesday and TEPCO was struggling to restore power to all functions, including the cooling systems. On Thursday, the operator restored lighting in the control room for reactor 3. Meanwhile, fear of radioactive contamination spread in areas near the plant and the Kanto region. Levels of radioactive iodine rose at water-purification plants near Tokyo Thursday as authorities warned that infants in the area should not be given tap water to drink. Officials in Matsudo City, 210 kilometres south-west of the stricken Fukushima 1 nuclear power station, said they found around 200 becquerels of radioactive iodine per litre of the city's water. The recommended maximum is 100 becquerels per litre for children under 1 year of age, and 300 for adults. The contamination was thought to have spread from nuclear reactors of the stricken plant. Authorities urged residents in Matsudo and 10 neighbouring cities, including Ichikawa and Funabashi, not to let infants drink tap water. In Ibaraki, a prefecture hard hit by the disaster and near the stricken power plant at Fukushima, officials of Hitachi city found 295 becquerels and 150 becquerels of radioactive iodine per litre of water at its two water-purification plants. Places including Hitachi Ota City, Tokai Village and Iwaki City also detected radioactive iodine at levels higher than 100 becquerels. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano urged an increase in production of bottled water. The Tokyo metropolitan government said Wednesday infants should not drink tap water in the 23 wards that make up the capital city, and in five cities in the western part of the Tokyo prefecture, after finding radioactive iodine at around 200 becquerels per litre in the water. The level of radioactive iodine in Tokyo, however, fell below the recommended maximum for infants Thursday. The Tokyo metropolitan government still continued to provide 240,000 550-millilitre bottles of water to households with infants. "When we think (radioactive iodine) was in the water yesterday, we were frightened," one mother holding a baby told a programme on public broadcaster NHK. As fear of radioactive contamination has spread, the government has started monitoring soil, seawater and air around the plant to evaluate the pollution and its impact on agricultural and fishery products.
