Japan is battling to prevent a nuclear meltdown after an explosion at a power plant in the north-east of the country. Concerns had been raised about Fukushima No 1 plant in Futuba, about 150 miles from Tokyo, following yesterday's (March 11th) massive earthquake and tsunami, The Telegraph reports.
The AFP agency reported that a blast was heard and white smoke seen billowing into the air at one of two power plants which the Japanese government had placed under a state of emergency. Several workers were reported to have been injured.
Prime minister Naoto Kan had warned that a radiation leak might occur at one of the reactors at the Daiichi facility at Fukushima, 150 miles north of Tokyo, after Friday's 8.9-magnitude quake.
The reports of an explosion followed aftershocks and came as a huge humanitarian operation got under way.
By Saturday morning at least 1,300 people were feared dead and international rescue teams began to arrive.
The reactor’s cooling system failed after the earthquake struck off the Pacific coast, triggering a 33ft tsunami. Pressure in the reactor was continuing to rise after repeated efforts to return power to the cooling systems failed. Radiation inside the plant soared to 1,000 times its normal level, officials said, triggering evacuation orders for residents.
