Tehran, March 31: The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) says it will inspect direct flights from Tokyo to Tehran to prevent any possible transfer of radioactive substances.
The Islamic Republic’s nuclear body announced the decision on Wednesday and following reports indicating detection of radioactive iodine-131 at a concentration of 3,355 times the legal level near the quake-hit Daiichi Fukushima nuclear plant, IRNA reported.
Japan has been faced with an unprecedented radiation crisis since the nuclear facility suffered several explosions in its cooling systems after a devastating tsunami that hit northeastern Japan on the heels of an 8.9 magnitude tremor on March 11.
Iran’s Nuclear Safety System Center will closely follow the developments in Japan’s battered nuclear plant in lines with insuring the Iranian citizens’ health, the AEIO said in a statement.
“Regarding the inspections and measurements conducted, the likelihood of Iran’s susceptibility to the pollution from the crippled power plant is very low,” the statement, however, reassured.
The statement said the latest reports on the situation of Fukushima plant are posted on the AEOI’s website at www.aeoi.org.ir on a regular and daily basis.
The statement noted that the inspection of a Tokyo-Tehran flight, due to land in the Iranian capital on Friday morning, will be carried out in the international Imam Khomeini Airport with the presence of media reporters.
——–Agencies