All fuel removed from Fukushima Daiichi No. 4 unit pool
12:12, 21 December 2014
TOKYO. KAZINFORM The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant said Saturday it has finished removing all fuel rods from the spent fuel pool of the badly damaged No. 4 reactor building, a major step in decommissioning efforts.
A total of 1,535 fuel rod assemblies, including 1,331 riskier spent fuel rods and 204 unused ones, have been now taken to other buildings after Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s yearlong operation, reducing risks of exposure of the fuel in the event of a new earthquake or other possible accidents, Kyodo reports. "Completion of the removal work is a milestone and I feel deeply about it," plant chief Akira Ono told reporters, adding TEPCO will not let its guard down as the decommissioning process will be lengthy.