title: Engineering case report.
abstract: During the emergency work at the Fukushima Daiichi Atomic Power Plant, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and the Japanese government experienced various problems in radiological exposure management for emergency workers. Radiological exposures resulted from the inappropriate use of respiratory protection, the improper use of protective garments, and insufficient worker training. Among the efforts to reduce external exposure, there were problems associated with the control of working hours, the effective use of a radiation shielding, and the lack of well-prepared work plans. To reduce the exposure dose, the following lessons should be shared with other atomic power plants (APPs) and various stakeholders: (a) to prevent internal exposure, it is necessary to monitor the radioactive concentration of the workplace indoor air during an emergency, to stockpile and use appropriate respiratory protection and train newcomers how to use, fit, and fit-test the respirators; (b) to prevent unnecessary beta-ray exposure, liquid-proof garments should be mandatory when workers handle contaminated water; (c) to reduce external exposure, it is indispensable to develop well-prepared work plans prior to the work and to monitor the ambient dose rate of the work area to develop proper working procedures; (d) the earlier deployment of remote-controlled vehicles and the utilization of tungsten shielding vests can contribute to exposure reduction. Further research and development of remote-controlled devices to monitor and survey affected areas are urgently required.
authors.affiliation: a Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare , Tokyo , Japan.
authors.forename: Shojiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yasui
mesh_terms: D001610:Beta Particles; D060731:Emergency Responders / Q000193:education*; D004782:Environmental Health / Q000193:education; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D006801:Humans; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D011835:Radiation Protection / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D012134:Respiratory Protective Devices