JAPAN - A MAN drove his truck into the compound of a nuclear
power plant on Thursday just kilometres from Japan's quake-stricken
reactors, managing to evade police for two hours and embarrassing
the country's already heavily criticised nuclear authorities.
He had driven inside the government's 20km evacuation zone
around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant which has been leaking
radiation after it was by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
The man's motives were unclear but he appears to have been a
right-wing activist. Apart from breaking down a gate to get in, he
caused no other damage.
'At 12.21pm local time this afternoon, a man in a propaganda
truck drove up to the main gate of Fukushima Daiichi plant and
demanded entry. The plant's personnel refused, so the truck then
drove to Daini (nuclear plant, 12km away),' Hidehiko Nishiyama,
deputy director-general of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety
Agency, told a daily news briefing.
'Being refused entry at the main gate there, he went around to
the western side gate, rammed it, and entered,' said Mr Nishiyama,
who looked surprised at the interest shown by reporters in the
incident.
The man had driven around the area briefly before leaving. He
was eventually caught two hours later after a police chase. --
REUTERS
