Source: The Guardian

2.15pm
Damaged Japanese nuclear plant 'may sit on fault line'

Justin McCurry in Tokyo
Wednesday July 18, 2007
Guardian Unlimited

The world's biggest nuclear power station faces an uncertain
future after it emerged today that it may lie directly above
the fault line that triggered this week's earthquake in which
nine people died and more than 1,000 were injured.

The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant - the biggest in the world in
terms of output capacity - has been shut down indefinitely
after it shook violently when an earthquake measuring 6.8 on
the Richter scale struck Niigata prefecture in northern Japan
on Monday. The plant was not designed to resist shaking
caused by earthquakes of greater than magnitude 6.5.

On another day of embarrassment for Japan's nuclear power
industry, the Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco), which
operates the plant, said the amount of radioactivity in water
that leaked into the sea during the earthquake was 50%
higher than it originally said. The firm blamed a calculation
error and said the levels were still well within safety
standards.

-snip-

Akira Fukushima, the deputy director general of Japan's
Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, said no irregularities
had been found in critical areas of the plant but added: "It
is possible that the epicentre fault line does run beneath
the power plant. Our decision on what to do in the future
will depend on the report we get from Tepco."

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/japan/story/0,,2129237,00.html

That sounds pretty good. There have been wind turbines that have fallen over all by themselves.

--p!