Two of the Fukushima Fifty pour over plans as they try to work out how to fix the stricken plant
Workers collect data in the control room for Unit 1 and Unit 2. They must wear rubber suits to prevent as much radiation from entering their bodies as possible
Workers in protective suits work on a transmission tower to restore electricity to Units 5 and 6
Like the ‘liquidators’ who risked, and in many cases lost their lives cleaning up in the immediate aftermath of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, the heroes of Fukushima have been hard at work in unimaginably horrific conditions since March 11.
Although some power has now been restored to the facility, the workers known as the “Fukushima Fifty” face a difficult job getting pumps and circuits to operate the crucial systems that provide cooling for the reactors and the spent fuel stored on site.
The photos released by Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency are the first look inside the plant since the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami that flooded the facility and crippled the back-up generators needed to cool the radioactive fuel.
Pictures: A Rare Look In side Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant (National Geographic)
Fukushima: Get Ready For the Chernobyl Solution (Big Science News)