A small fire broke out in a Japanese nuclear plant Thursday, injuring one worker, but was extinguished without a radiation leak, said operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO).
The fire broke out at a suspended reactor in the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, the world's largest by electricity output, near the city of Niigata, TEPCO said.
The power company was investigating the cause of the blaze, which was confirmed to have been extinguished after about 90 minutes, a spokesman for the utility, Asia's largest power company, told AFP.
The worker who noticed the fire just before 9:00 am (2400 GMT Wednesday) was hospitalised with minor facial injuries, the company said.
The fire came weeks after Japanese nuclear authorities gave the green light to soon restart one of seven reactors at the plant, which has been suspended since an earthquake in July 2007 caused a fire and a small radiation leak.
Local municipalities are currently studying whether they should give the final approval to allow the power company to resume operations.
The fire was the eighth at the plant since the suspension, the company said.
Harufumi Mochizuki, vice minister of economy, trade and industry, said the latest fire at the plant was "extremely regrettable."
Many people living near the plant, about 225 kilometres (140 miles) northwest of Tokyo, have voiced concerns about its safety record.
"When I heard the news of the fire, I shouted to myself 'again!'" said 67-year-old housewife Yaeko Kobayashi.
"They've made similar mistakes of causing a fire several times since the quake," she told AFP. "Why do they repeat the same mistake? At this point, it's hard to believe that their way of operating is completely safe."
