TOKYO: The operator of Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant said yesterday it will decommission two reactors at the troubled site that escaped major physical damage from the 2011 tsunami. The plant had a total of six reactors when a record 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck on March 11, 2011 and unleashed a killer tsunami. The natural disasters wrecked Fukushima’s reactors 1 through 4, with three of them suffering meltdowns and spewing radioactive material over a vast farming region.
Taiwan grounds new choppers
TAIPEI: Taiwan yesterday grounded its new fleet of US-made Apache attack helicopters for checks after a notice from Washington warning the model could malfunction. “There was some malfunctioning of the planes in the US army last week so we are doing some special checks now. (The helicopters) can resume flying once the checks are completed,” Defence Minister Yen Ming told a parliamentary meeting. The US will pay for testing and repair fees, he added.
Filipina Miss International
TOKYO: A Philippine beauty queen has been crowned Miss International in a pageant marred by allegations of intimidation that kept her predecessor away, pledging to use her title to help victims of the country’s devastating typhoon. “This is my dream. Thank you Japan for giving it to me,” an ecstatic Bea Rose Santiago said at the event late on Tuesday in Tokyo. “I’m going to use my crown and my title to help the victims” of Typhoon Haiyan, which raked the Philippines last month, leaving nearly 8,000 people dead or missing. “So this is actually for my province, and this is for the Philippines.” Outgoing title-holder Japanese Ikumi Yoshimatsu said she had been asked by organisers to stay away from the final.
Agencies
