Worker Injured in Fire at Japanese Nuclear Plant

One worker was injured Thursday in a fire at a Japanese nuclear power
plant, but there was no release of radioactivity, the operator said.

The fire occurred in an air filter at the plant, which has been closed
since February for routine inspections, said Mitsuhiro Takauchi, a spokesman
for Tohoku Electric Power Co. Inc.

The worker suffered minor burns on his hands, Takauchi said. Police
and fire department officials were investigating the cause of the fire at
the plant in Miyagi, 205 miles (330 kilometers) north of Tokyo.

Resource-poor Japan relies on nuclear plants for a third of its energy
needs and plans to raise that to nearly 40 percent by 2010. But its nuclear
power program has a history of accidents and lax oversight.

In September 1999, an uncontrolled nuclear reaction occurred at a fuel
reprocessing center in Tokaimura, a rural area 70 miles (110 kilometers)
northeast of Tokyo. Two workers were killed and about 700 people were
exposed to radiation.

In August, liquid containing uranium splashed out of a container at a
nuclear fuel plant southwest of Tokyo, exposing two people to radiation. In
October, smoke was detected at a nuclear power complex in Tokaimura, but
operator Japan Atomic Power Co. said there was no radiation leak.