Each time workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant make some headway in their attempts to get the damaged facility under control, a new problem seems to arise. This week, for instance, observers celebrated when electrical power was partially restored. But by Friday, the discovery of highly radioactive water led to fears that radiation was leaking from a damaged reactor core.
This one-step-forward, one-step-back routine could continue for days or even weeks before the situation is fully under control, experts said. But they can already see what it will take to get the plant stable enough to handle unexpected problems in stride.
