A "cartoon-like level of incompetence," first Japanese govt. commissioned report finds on Fukushima Nuclear Catastrophe response

The Economist has reported that the Japanese government's first report on responses -- by its own agencies and leadership, as well as that of Tokyo Electric Power Company -- to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power catastrophe has found "an almost cartoon-like level of incompetence." This led to such disasters as Fukushima Daiichi Unit 1 workers and supervisors losing six critical hours in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami, due to their unfamiliarity with the safety and containment systems; this resulted in the Unit 1 reactor melting down and exploding the next day. The federal government's own incompetence led to the town of Namie, just kilometers from the front entrance to Fukushima Daiichi, evacuating to a significantly more radioactive location -- even though federal government agencies already knew this reality, but failed to communicate it. The article concludes, "Until somebody in power seizes on the report as a call to action, its findings, especially those that reveal sheer ineptitude, suggest that the public has every reason to remain as scared as hell."