Eight more experts from the NRC are being sent to Japan to help that country respond to its nuclear emergency. They join two other NRC staff who were dispatched Saturday. All NRC staff members are acting as part of a U.S. Agency for International Development assistance team, and are being sent at the request of the Japanese government.
The additional team members include more reactor experts, international affairs professional staffers, and a senior manager from one of the NRC’s four region offices. They come from NRC headquarters and regional offices in King of Prussia, Pa., and Atlanta, Ga.
The team will do whatever is necessary to understand the status of safely shutting down the affected Japanese reactors; better understand the potential impact on people and the environment; and, if asked, provide technical advice and support through the U.S. ambassador.
The team is led by Charles A. Casto, deputy regional administrator of the NRC’s Center of Construction Inspection, and members will be in communication with the Japanese regulator, the U.S. Embassy, NRC headquarters, and other government stakeholders as appropriate.
We’ll keep you up to date on their experiences. They are expected to arrive Wednesday, Japanese time.
Eliot Brenner Public Affairs Director