JAPAN: Shipping company scans all export containers for radiation to ease customer fears

Record ID: 462095

  • Title: JAPAN: Shipping company scans all export containers for radiation to ease customer fears
  • Date: 27th April 2011
  • Summary: YOKOHAMA, KANAGAWA PREFECTURE, JAPAN (APRIL 26, 2011) (REUTERS) TRUCK CARRYING SHIPPING CONTAINER OF AMERICAN PRESIDENT LINES (APL) DRIVING PAST SIGN THAT READS IN JAPANESE "RADIATION SCANNING IN PROGRESS" MAN HOLDING RADIATION MEASURING DEVICE WALKING AND BEGINNING TO SCAN CONTAINER MAN SCANNING CONTAINER MAN HOLDING SCANNER TRUCK DRIVING UP AND MAN WALKING UP TO SCAN CONTAINER CONTAINER BEING SCANNED MORE OF MAN SCANNING CONTAINER FOR RADIATION VARIOUS OF CONTAINERS BEING SCANNED FOR RADIATION APL JAPAN DIRECTOR AND YOKOHAMA BRANCH MANAGER ISAO KUBO BEING INTERVIEWED (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) AMERICAN PRESIDENT LINES JAPAN DIRECTOR AND YOKOHAMA BRANCH MANAGER ISAO KUBO SAYING "While we are just one carrier, we want to show that we are checking the safety of our customer's goods. We believe that this will go a long way towards relieving a lot of unease that some of our customers have." CONTAINER YARD CONTAINERS BEING LOADED ONTO SHIP CONTAINERS ON SHIP VARIOUS OF CONTAINER CARRIERS MOVING IN YARD CONTAINER BEING LIFTED OFF TRUCK AND TRUCK DRIVING AWAY CONTAINER YARD
  • Embargoed: 12th May 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Japan, Japan
  • Country: Japan
  • Topics: Health,Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVAAJYVIOJJSKOCGZ83ZY9FTL61P
  • Story Text: Amidst radiation fears caused by the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, one shipping company showed their procedures to scan containers for radiation on Tuesday (April 26) in an effort to ease customers' fears.
    The shipping company American President Lines (APL) started scanning outgoing containers from April 6, in response to concerns that containers originating from Japan could be contaminated with radiation as the country struggles to deal with the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.
    "While we are just one carrier, we want to show that we are checking the safety of our customer's goods. We believe that this will go a long way towards relieving a lot of unease that some of our customers have,"
    said Isao Kubo, APL Japan Director and Yokohama Branch Manager.
    The containers are screened by a certified radiation scanning specialist as they enter the gate of the container yard before they are exported abroad.
    While many companies scan only a portion of their goods, APL has now ramped up the scanning so that any container loaded on an APL vessel for export is individually scanned before being shipped.
    Several countries have restricted food imports from Japan over radiation fears. China has banned imports of some Japanese food and agricultural products. South Korea banned food imports from four areas of Japan affected by the nuclear crisis until radiation concerns ease.
    Radiation spilled out from the Fukushima nuclear facility after a hydrogen explosion, and in their battle to cool melting fuel rods, engineers pumped radioactive water into the Pacific, a move that worried Japan's neighbours about the spread of contamination.
    The plant owner, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), wants a "cold shutdown" of the plant, 240 km (150 miles) from the capital, within six to nine months, a timeline experts say will be tough to meet.
    Tuesday marks the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident. Japan's chief cabinet secretary stressed that the nature of the Fukushima accident is different, and the amount of radiation released is significantly lower.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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