Uranium spill at Japan plant, no injury

A small amount of uranium powder escaped from a machine at a Japanese nuclear fuel plant near Tokyo, slightly exposing a worker to radiation, the plant operator said Thursday.

There was no health threat to the worker and the spill from Wednesday's incident was contained inside the plant in Yokosuka, about 30 miles southwest of Tokyo, according to Global Nuclear Fuel-Japan Co.

The accident occurred when a uranium pressing unit was started up without a cap that had been removed for an inspection, the company said.

It said the plant resumed operations after workers wiped up the spilled uranium on and around the equipment.

The company, a joint venture among General Electric Co., Toshiba Corp. and Hitachi Ltd., produces uranium pellets for Japanese nuclear power plants.

Resource-poor Japan relies on nuclear plants for a third of its energy needs and plans to raise that to nearly 40 percent by 2010.