Fifth worker dies from Mihama PWR steam accident

Bonn (Platts)--25Aug2004

A fifth maintenance worker burned by hot steam and water at Kansai Electric
Co.'s Mihama-3 PWR has died, more than two weeks after the mishap occurred and
the victim was placed on the critical list in a Fukui hospital. Almost
immediately after the secondary-side pipe ruptured on Aug. 9, four workers
were killed, and seven others were taken to the hospital. The accident has
triggered a probe by Fukui prosecutors and regulators, while Kansai has begun
stepwise shutdowns of nine PWRs to check on the integrity of turbine-side
piping affected in the Mihama-3 rupture. Prosecutors are investigating whether
Kansai Electric violated Japan's Industrial Safety & Health Act in failing to
inspect the ruptured pipe segment prior to the accident.

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