Skip to main content
CNN

'Rat-like animal' blamed for power loss at Japan nuclear plant

By Josh Levs, CNN
updated 9:37 PM EDT, Wed March 20, 2013

(CNN) -- A "rat-like animal" just might be the reason for power outages at a critical Japanese nuclear facility this week.

The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi plant suspects such a critter of causing a short circuit in a switchboard that led to a power outage, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported Wednesday.

U.S. military join lawsuit over Fukushima exposure

Since a devastating earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 that triggered a nuclear disaster at the plant, the switchboard has been on the back of a truck outdoors, the report said.

CNN's Chad Myers explains the power loss

Tokyo Electric Power Co. has resumed operations at all nine facilities where power outages occurred, including a facility that removes radioactive substances from water used to cool reactors, Kyodo reported.

The temporary power loss did not trigger a known release of radioactive material.

Fortune: Robots have failed Fukushima Daiichi and Japan

ADVERTISEMENT
Part of complete coverage on
CNN Recommends
updated 1:14 PM EDT, Tue May 21, 2013
Did you know that hurricanes can also produce tornadoes? Read facts you didn't know about destructive twisters.
updated 11:51 AM EDT, Tue May 21, 2013
Ten years later, acid attack victim Sonali Mukherjee still fights for justice and appeared on India's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" to pay for treatment.
updated 12:04 AM EDT, Wed May 22, 2013
A quarter century after his death, American pop artist Andy Warhol has popped up in China again after his first and only trip to the country in 1982.
Just three years ago, Myanmar was being brutally led by one of the world's most repressive military regimes; today, it is a fledgling democracy.
updated 12:39 PM EDT, Mon May 20, 2013
No solutions to the violence and total confusion is no longer just news, but a terrifying daily reality. Has Nigeria descended into civil war?
updated 6:54 AM EDT, Tue May 21, 2013
A microscope slide with a trace of the late Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi's blood is up for auction in England.
updated 6:32 AM EDT, Tue May 21, 2013
No longer grounded for battery problems, United's Dreamliner 787 Flight 1 sped down a Houston runway, en route to Chicago O'Hare.
updated 6:12 AM EDT, Tue May 21, 2013
AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli gets personal with CNN's Pedro Pinto in this quickfire interview.
updated 9:54 AM EDT, Fri May 17, 2013
Anthony Bourdain discovers an American style, fast-food chicken restaurant that opened in Libya after the revolution -- and became an instant hit.
A growing number of Chinese couples are opting for fantasy pre-wedding photography, with a price tag ranging from $500 to $20,000.
ADVERTISEMENT