Tepco halts robot probe into Fukushima reactor 1 after camera breaks down

The operator of the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear complex said Tuesday it suspended its plan to start examining the inside of reactor 1 with a self-propelled robot after having camera trouble. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. is checking the cause of the problem and hoping to resume the survey Wednesday in its latest attempt at ascertaining the condition of melted fuel debris in order to extract it. While preparation was underway to send the robot inside the containment vessel after launching the day's work shortly after 10 a.m., a camera monitoring inside a box containing the robot, cables and other related equipment was found to be showing no images, it said. The box is located just outside the containment vessel. The malfunctioning camera is separate from one attached to the survey robot and is used to check whether the devices are functioning properly, according to the utility. Tepco has been hoping to view the debris through a camera embedded in the shape-shifting robot in order to decide how to extract the deposits of fuel presumed to have penetrated the reactor pressure vessel and melted through the containment vessel, which is supposed to hold the fuel.