Tsunami triggered nuclear crisis? German radiobiologist has nagging doubts
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According to Dr. Lindenberg, biological research on the effects of the 1945 nuclear attack, especially on embryogenesis, was restricted due to the following American occupation of Japan, so that Japanese scientists hid the discovery of the mutated animals and further censored all information on the rodent even until after the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1951. According to reports, the secret has been long held underground. At first, the animals were believed to be extremely useful in the extension of Tokyo's subway network, and were sold to one of the seven private railroad companies. Unfortunately, initial test drillings had to be abandoned, after a group of the rodents nagged their way into the tunnel of the Ginza line at Ueno-Okachimachi station, where they were found mating.
Later, Japan's nuclear watchdog, the Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC), had the idea to utilize the ‘super naggers' in a controlled experiment to recheck the construction quality of Japan's older nuclear plants after the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa power plant was completely shut down for 21 months following an earthquake in 2007. "Since Hannover and Hiroshima are twin towns, the local branch of the NSC contacted us, and we gladly accepted the challenge. They put me in charge of the 2007 experiment, and it was the hamster's whiskers!" remembers the German expert. Shortly after that, Lindenberg told the journalist, TEPCO asked him whether his team would be ready to conduct a long term experiment in Fukushima-Daiichi which they did.
"That Friday, March 11, we had no clue that a seaquake was imminent and let the hamsters loose. They were to check the concrete of the safety containments. Then suddenly, the earth trembled and a red alert was given," said Lindenberg who still suffers a posttraumatic stress syndrome. "I have nagging doubts the hamsters have done something unforeseen." Asked by the journalist wether he believes it was the hamsters or the suddenly following tsunami that caused power outage in the plant and the failure of the cooling system which in turn led to the nuclear disaster we see today, the German expert replied with a frowned expression: "Well, I wouldn't knock on concrete and say it's either one or the other. All I can say is, we lost control of the hamsters in the confusion. And you know, hamsters like to gnaw on electric wires".
According to our correspondent in Tokyo, Japan's nuclear watchdog, amid heightening allegations, plans to dig into the hamster's burrow underneath Fukushima-Daiichi starting from April 1.
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