Japan News

Japan Admits It Was Unprepared for Nuclear Disaster

Japan admitted this week it was unprepared for a severe nuclear accident like the tsunami-caused Fukushima disaster and said damage to the reactors and radiation leakage were worse than it previously thought. In a report being submitted to the U.N. …

Report: Japan Underestimated Tsunami Risk to Plants

U.N. inspectors faulted Japan on Wednesday for underestimating the threat of a devastating tsunami on its crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant but praised its overall response to the crisis as exemplary. The preliminary report by a team from the International …

Oil Spill, Blast Hit Crippled Japan Nuclear Plant

An oil spill and a small explosion have caused limited damage – but no further radiation leaks – at the crippled nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan, the plant operator said Tuesday. Workers at Fukushima Dai-ichi plant found an oil …

Honda Fires 400 in Brazil; Japan Quake Cuts Parts

Honda is firing 400 workers at a car factory in Brazil because of a lack of parts from Japan following that nation’s earthquake. A Honda spokesman in Sao Paulo says Thursday that the plant also is reducing its output from …

Japan Approves Tepco Nuclear Claims Plan; Banks’ Help Eyed

Japan’s government agreed on Friday to set up a fund with taxpayer money to help Tokyo Electric Power compensate victims of the crisis at its tsunami-crippled nuclear plant and avoid financial collapse. The government will issue special-purpose bonds to help …

Quake Shifted Japan; Towns Now Flood at High Tide

When water begins to trickle down the streets of her coastal neighborhood, Yoshiko Takahashi knows it is time to hurry home. Twice a day, the flow steadily increases until it is knee-deep, carrying fish and debris by her front door …

A Third of Large U.S. Firms Disrupted From Japan Disaster

More than a quarter of large U.S. based businesses are experiencing disruptions to their supply chains or contingent business interruptions as a result of the March earthquake in Japan, says a new report. A new Greenwich Market Pulse study says …

Asbestos, Japan Tsunami’s Other Hidden Danger

Inside the chunks of slate and wallboard smashed and scattered by Japan’s tsunami hides a health risk that has been overshadowed by contamination from a leaking nuclear plant: the odorless and nearly invisible threat of asbestos. Activists have found the …

Toyota Car Production Plummets After Tsunami

Toyota’s car production in Japan plummeted a staggering 62.7 percent in March due to a parts supply crunch following the earthquake and tsunami. Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s top-selling automaker last year, said Monday its domestic production in March was …

Careful Search for Mementos Slows Japan Rebuilding

Sakuji Funayama watched intently as a giant steel claw tore chunks off the remains of his two-story home, ripped open like a dollhouse by last month’s tsunami and washed up onto a pile of debris. Suddenly, he spied something, waved …