Overview
- Researchers from Fukushima Medical University and Chiba University ran a Dec. 14 field test at a public facility near the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, using positive-pressure ventilation and window-sealing methods, with results to guide real-world operations.
- Government planning reported on Dec. 15 indicates new large-scale solar projects would lose purchase-price support starting in fiscal 2027, reflecting a policy shift for future megasolar deployments.
- The Sapporo Fire Bureau disclosed a misdirected 119 instruction that delayed an ambulance by about three minutes; an elderly woman later died after transport, with no confirmed causal link to the delay.
- Local public-safety reports included a fatal collision in Fukagawa that killed a 20-year-old driver and a hit-and-run arrest in East Ura, where the 74-year-old suspect denied noticing the impact.
- Bank of Japan’s December tankan showed a third straight improvement in big manufacturers’ sentiment and labor shortages at levels last seen during the bubble era.