IAEA sends two more teams to Japan to assist with nuclear emergency

[News_Editor]

IAEA sends two more teams to Japan to assist with nuclear emergency

2011-03-26 18:04:49 GMT+7 (ICT)

VIENNA (BNO NEWS) -- The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Saturday said it has dispatched two additional teams to Japan to assist in the response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant emergency.

The IAEA said a team of IAEA specialists traveled to Japan on Thursday to continue efforts to supplement Japan's radiation monitoring efforts. Team members include worker radiation protection experts and safeguards department officials.

On Friday, a joint IAEA/Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) team departed Vienna. The three-person team includes the Head of the IAEA Food and Environmental Protection Laboratory, an IAEA soil scientist, and an FAO food safety specialist from FAO's headquarters in Rome.

This food contamination assessment team will provide advice and assistance on sampling and analytical strategies and will help interpret Japanese monitoring data, IAEA said.

The nuclear power plant in Japan was severely damaged on March 11 when an enormous 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck off its northeastern coast, triggering a large tsunami that devastated the country. Overall, more than 20,000 people are believed to have been killed.

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