TEPCO releases VIDEOS from ACCIDENT IN PROGRESS, but...  Update 8/6/12
Channel: MsMilkytheclown1
Date: 2012-08-07

TEPCO releases footage of Fukushima teleconference

Tokyo Electric Power Company has released long-awaited footage of its teleconferences held right after the accident began at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

The utility released on Monday videos showing exchanges between the plant and head office during the 5-day period from March 11th last year when a massive earthquake and tsunami hit the plant. Only one-third of the 150-hours of video contain audio sound.

The media are allowed to watch the videos on personal computers at TEPCO's head office. The company bans reporters from making copies of the footage.

Separately, the utility provided the media a 90-minute video that has been edited so people other than TEPCO executives will not be identified.

The video shows workers struggling as the plant lost all power sources and hydrogen explosions occurred at some reactor buildings.

The video also shows TEPCO officials expressing confusion as they communicated with top government members.

After an explosion at the Number 3 reactor, officials at the plant and head office had heated exchanges about a reactor that could not be cooled down.

A major focus of the footage is whether TEPCO officials told the government they would withdraw all workers from the plant.

TEPCO has denied making such a remark. But government officials insist they heard the utility was giving up on the plant and suggesting an evacuation. The video features the remark in question.

The utility finally released the footage in response to requests from the public, but only on a limited basis.

The released part is not sufficient to review the responses to the accident. Calls for full disclosure are expected to increase.

An information expert is calling for full disclosure of the TEPCO video footage.

Mikio Haruna is a visiting professor at Tokyo's Waseda University Graduate School. He says the footage is a national asset that will help determine the cause of the accident at the power plant and prevent a recurrence.

He also says the footage is critical in view of people's right to access to information.

Haruna criticizes Tokyo Electric Power Company for deleting sections of the video. He says people may suspect that the utility has something to hide.

He says the video should be fully disclosed so that the accident can be thoroughly reviewed.

Aug. 6, 2012 - Updated 11:32 UTC (20:32 JST)
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20120806_30.html
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TEPCO executives leave HQ amid crisis (NOTE THE OMISSIONS! AND DISTRUST OF TEPCO!!)

Video footage released by Tokyo Electric Power Company shows the utility's executives leaving the Tokyo headquarters as the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was unfolding.

The scene is part of 150 hours of footage released on Monday. But the image is not available to the public as it is not on the 90-minute version provided to the media.

The full-length video shows then-TEPCO president Masataka Shimizu and most other executives on the company's taskforce leaving the office late on March 12th last year, the day after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit the power plant. A hydrogen explosion occurred at the No.1 reactor that afternoon.

TEPCO officials say their engineers remained to deal with the situation.

The full-length video contains exchanges between the Fukushima plant and Tokyo head office over the 5 days following the disaster.

The media were only allowed to watch the footage on personal computers at the headquarters. TEPCO does not allow reporters to make copies.

Aug. 6, 2012 - Updated 20:28 UTC (05:28 JST)
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20120807_06.html