Japan earthquake leads to state of emergency at Fukushima nuclear power plant

Japan is evacuating thousands of residents near a nuclear power plant after its cooling system failed following today's massive earthquake.
After the magnitude 8.9 earthquake rocked Japan today, a "state of emergency" was declared at the Fukushima No 1 power plant.
The Fukushima reactor, around 30 miles inland from the coast in north-east Japan, suffered a failure in its cooling system.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano, the top government spokesman, said the nuclear power plant developed a mechanical failure in the system needed to cool the reactor after it was shut down.
He said the measure was a precaution as there was was no radiation leak and the facility was not in immediate danger.
More than 2,800 people were ordered to evacuate after the government's declaration of a state of emergency at the plant.
The nuclear safety agency says plant workers are scrambling to restore cooling water supply at the . There was no prospect for an immediate success.

Advertisement - article continues below »

The plant experienced a mechanical failure in the backup power generation system to supply water needed to cool the reactor. The reactor core remains hot even after a shutdown.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said that the plant was not in immediate danger of radiation leak.
The plant is in Onahama city, about 170 miles north-east of Tokyo.
The plant is just south of the worst-hit Miyagi prefecture, where a fire broke out at another nuclear plant.
The blaze was in a turbine building at one of the Onagawa power plants; smoke could be seen coming out of the building, which is separate from the plant's reactor, Tohoku Electric Power Co said. It has since been extinguished.
Another plant at Onagawa is experiencing a water leak.