Japan probes radiation cover-up report

Takashi Wada, the president of Build-Up, a subcontractor for plant operator TEPCO, confessed that one of its executives had told workers to cover radiation detection devices.

The move by the company was designed to underreport workers’ exposure to radioactive materials to let the company continue working at the disaster-stricken plant, media reports said.

A group of Build-Up employees have been working at Fukushima, trying to restore facilities during the past few months.

In December, a Build-Up executive told workers to cover their dosimeters — used to measure cumulative exposure — with lead casings when working in areas with high radiation.

“Unless we hide it with lead, exposure will max out and we cannot work,” the executive was heard saying in a recording.

In case the workers didn’t comply with the order, Wada said, they would find out about the high level of radiation, which is above the permissible annual exposure limit of 50 millisieverts.

On March 11, 2011, a nine-magnitude-strong earthquake triggered a tsunami that inflicted heavy damage on the six-reactor plant. Cooling systems of the plant’s reactors were knocked out, leading to meltdowns and the release of radioactivity.

All of Japan’s nuclear reactors were gradually taken offline for two months for maintenance or safety checks after the tsunami.

YH/HN

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