Publication Laka-library:
Criticality accident at Tokai-mura (2000)
| Author | CNIC |
| Date | May 2000 |
| Classification | 4.21.8.20/02 (JAPAN - TOKAI MURA) |
| Front | 
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From the publication:
Chapter I The Shock of the Criticality Accident A Flash of Blue Light It was slightly past noon on September 30, 1999. All phone lines at our office, the Citizens' Nuclear Information Center (CNIC), began to ring at once, and messages began to continually flow from the fax machine. It was the mass media trying to get comments on the accident. Whenever there is news of an "Accident!!" we must instantaneously judge the seriousness of it, and decide how to deal with the situation. The news of the blue flash foretold the seriousness of the situation, and the energy of all CNIC staff was focused on the accident. The news was that around 10:35 that morning, there had been a radiation/radioactivity releasing accident at the plant of JCO Co. (the proper name of the company, not an acronym; formerly called Japan Nuclear Fuel Conversion, Ltd.). The plant is located in the village of Tokai (hereinafter Tokai-mura) in Ibaraki Prefecture, about 110 km northeast of Tokyo. JCO was engaged in the reconversion of uranium as part of the nuclear fuel fabrication process. At this point there was no concrete information on the scale of the incident. However, it was reported that three employees had been exposed, and that they had seen a flash of blue light. In addition, it seemed that the three employees were seriously exposed and were in a critical condition. The Shock of the Criticality Accident
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