welcome back to "newsline." i'm yuko aotani in tokyo. operators of the nuclear plant in central japan had to deal with an incident soon after one of the facility's reactor's reached capacity. the ohi plant is the first to restart following the accident at fukushima daiichi last year. one setoff an alarm after reactor four reached capacity.

it indicated the water briefly rose high. the other readings were normal. it will keep the reactor in full operation. the number four reactor at ohi was restarted a week ago. ohi's number three reactor resumed operation this month and is also running at capacity. the two reactors have the biggest output of those run by kansai electric. it covers the second largest city of osaka. >> translator: we have now able to provide enough stable electricity. this is a big relief. >> power saving targets will now be lifted in the service areas of three other utilities in central and western japan. the government gave the go ahead

last month saying the safety has been confirmed. a panel of experts is calling for a series of cracks beneath the line to check for faults. prosecutors have decided to accept criminal complaints over the nuclear accident. residents filed the complaints last month against the central government and plant's operator. about 1,300 people asked the prosecutors in fukushima prefecture to investigate top officials in the government and tokyo electric power company. the plaintiffs accuse of negligence. the sources say the prosecutor made the decision after the panel of experts released the final report on monday on the accident. the prosecutors have to identify the cause of the accident if they decide to file charges. the government panel and three other committees have failed to

opini pinpoint the cause. it would be hard to decide if the harm was caused in japan. workers in fukushima have been using water to keep the damaged reactors cool, but it created another problem. they have a massive amount of radioactive water to clean up. engineers believe they found a solution. right now, workers at fukushima daiichi used a decontamination tool that only removes cesium. the device unveiled tuesdayan remove cesium and other materials as well. the toxic water goes into a stainless steel tank containing a resin that absorbs radioactive materials. operators at fukushima daiichi hope to test the device in september. they have not decided what they will do with the water so it will be stored on-site. thousands of people in japan are on the frontlines against

the fight of the invisible enemy. they are cleaning up the radiation leak and it is still leaking. some worked at the damaged nuclear plant and others worked in the towns surrounding it. on of equipment and the people who shrugged off health fears. we have junio motosori with the story. >> reporter: hundreds are working on the clean up. radiation could be anywhere. so they are required to wear plenty of protective gear. boots, gloves and thick clothing. masks are part of the work wardrobe. it can make a difference between staying healthy and getting sick. >> translator: we cannot go without masks.

>> reporter: the meltdown and explosions at fukushima released a massive amount of contamination in the environment. workers at the plant have more varieties. that created a booming mask-making business in japan. supplies have been racing to keep up with demand. the plant is located here. he is in charge of the factory which the earthquake partially damaged. it produces about 90% of protective masks used at nuclear plants in japan, including fukushima daiichi. the work increased to 300,000 masks a month. >> translator: if we didn't supply masks, workers at the plant would not be able to work

to contain the nuclear accident. if the accident cannot be contained, that would put all of japan at risk, i thought. >> reporter: he faced a dilemma because he did not know if it was safe to be in the factory. it's outside evacuation zone surrounding fukushima daiichi, but he is still worried his 100 workers could be exposed to radiation. >> translator: if their work wasn't making masks, they would have wanted to evacuate to a safer place because we had no information about the radiation. >> reporter: 33-year-old mayi is one of the factory employees who kept showing up at work despite the lingering fears. >> translator: i am trying my best to maintain the quality of

the product. >> reporter: the mother of two couldn't quit her job for financial reasons. she also felt compelled to stay in the city where she was born and raised. still, concerns about radiation were never far away. her children usually had more to ask than "how was your day" when she finished a shift. >> translator: i asked her if she was all right with the radiation. >> translator: actually, she told me to stay away because radiation was infectious. >> reporter: jokes aside, when she takes her role at the factory seriously, she sees it as part of the larger effort to help japan deal with the fukushima accident. >> translator: i want the nuclear disaster to be contained as soon as possible. it's not really for my own sake, but for the future of our

children. >> reporter: the masks they make here, thousands a day, help protect crews on the frontlines of the fight to clean up fukushima daiichi. the workers hope it will help reduce the risks facing their children and the towns they called home since they were children. >> and we have jun joining us from the studio in northeastern japan. you showed us one example of the company making the best of the bad situation in the prefecture. how have other businesses responded to the nuclear crisis? >> reporter: some workers need to use special bags to contain contaminated soil. some businesses are giving priority to manufactures. local businesses are expected to get contracts when it comes time to haul contaminated soil to

storage facilities. as of now, authorities have not decided where to put the facili facilities. firms in the fukushima area will dominate the work. it is something of a mixed blessing, but it looks like it will create jobs in the area. >> of course, employment is something people need in fukushima since the disaster hurt the economy. how is the government helping with the recovery effort? >> reporter: right. prime minister yoshihiko noda's cabinet approved a plan on july 15th to rebuild fukushima. he want people to stop leaving the area and the government is responsible for allowing utilities to build nuclear power plants in fukushima. it said the government will do everything it can to rebuild the prefecture. people there need help. fukushima officials say the

prefecture's main farm products like cucumbers and rice only bring in 70% to 90% of pre--disaster price. it will be a long time for fukushima to get back to normal. in the prefecture, i realized revitalizing the economy is not just about the government plans or promotion of local products, but the key lies in the sense of responsibility and love residents have for their home. >> all right. thanks very much, jun. immediately after the march, 2011 earthquake and tsunami, most people trying to get through to friends and family by telephone only got a busy tone. the network simply could not cope. that is one reason why a government panel has drawn up a telecom program. the panel calls for the improved

performance in times of disaster. it should be able to handle up to 50 times more traffic than normal. the disaster hampered the use of mobile phones far from the hardest hit areas. japan should work with other countries to create by 2015, technology to predict and prevent cyber attacks. experts say ultra high speed wireless broadband should be in place by 2015. the opening ceremony for the games is friday and in true olympic fashion, it is expected to be a flashy affair. people in london gathered ahead of the event for a more subdued ceremony. they went to the unveiling of an urban oasis that is called the fukushima garden. landscapers created it to show support for japan following the disaster last year.

the japanese garden is located in holland park in central london. designers used the official flower of fukushima prefecture to illustrate the area's scenery. two olympic athletes from fukushima, attended the opening ceremony. students also went. >> i am grateful for the support from people in the u.k. >> she says the people of fukushima will do their best to recover from the 2011 disaster. security isn't the only concern in london. the british government is facing a labor protest that could keep thousands of visitors from reaching the city. it is seeking a court order to stop immigration and customs workers from going on strike one

day before the olympics. a labor union representing the workers voted to conduct a strike on thursday to protect against government job cuts. the announcement has raised fears at airports as visitors arrive from around the world. the government filed an injunction to stop workers from walking off the job citing an error in the ballot. the union shouldn't take this action when the world is focused on britain. government ministers should negotiate a settlement instead of going through the courts. the united nations security council is deadlocked over how to deal with the conflict in syria. now u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton says the united states will side step the council and try to find a solution with the arab league and other partners. >> we obviously spent a good amount of time working to find a

way that russia and china could move forward with us in the security council, that is on the far back burner right now. >> russia and china last week vetoed a resolution that would have imposed sanctions on the syrian administration of bashar al-assad. >> we will intensify our efforts with the arab league and with the neighbors and friends of syria and with the justice and accountability unit we're starting with the u.n. commission of inquiry and the sanctions working group. all of the other elements that are not affected by the failure to act in the security council. that is what we're doing. >> the violence in syria is growing worse. fighter jets and helicopter gun ships joined the fighting in the second largest city and world

heritage site. the british-based syrian observatory says more than 100 people were killed on tuesday. finance ministry officials say problems at home and abroad combine to widen japan's trade balance. they posted a record-trade deficit for the first half of this year. the sluggish global economy is one factor and the other is utilities need to import more gas to make up for lack of nuclear power. finance ministers say the japan trade deficit in the first six months of 2012 stood at $37 billion. that is the largest deficit ever in the january-to-june period. exports are up 1.5% from a year ago. auto shipments to the united

states and asia grew, but demand for electronics and plastic parts fell. imports rose 7% because of an increase in liquid natural gas purchases. however, the trade balance for the month of june was in the black. it turned to a surplus after three months of deficits. the surplus was $790 million. finance minister officials say they will monitor the impact of the world economic trends on japan exports. the finance ministers are growing concerned over the pressures over the spain economy and the high debt. the spanish economy minister and the german economy minister said this does not add to the growth

potential and sustainability of the public debt. the yield on ten-year bonds rose at 7.6% on tuesday. that is the highest since spain introduced the eu. a rate above 7% would make it difficult to rebuild the government. the talks should be accelerated to set up an eu-wide banking union. the eu will need to offer the spanish government a bailout if the costs stay high. apple's forecasts were short despite the good outlook. the u.s. electronics giant said on tuesday that the quarterly profit was $8.8 billion. that is up 20% from a year ago. sales jumped 22% to $35 billion.

these figures were lower than analysts expected. that is because unit sales of the iphone fell 26% from the previous quarter. the smartphone accounts for nearly half of apple's total sales. many consumers postponed their purchases because of the new model release in the future. ipad soared up 35%. apple's top executive, tim cook, expressed confidence to boost the earnings further. apple will continue to launch innovative products. in south korea, known for the export-driven economy, the english education business has been expanding into another growth industry. the average school of standard international test in the country last year stood at 633. that is 57 points higher than the average in japan.

growing enthusiasm among the young people to improve english skills has prompted cram skills to teach. those schools are keen on exporting it. >> reporter: this school known as the english village is only a 30-minute drive from seoul. the school provides lessons designed to ensure that young students put english into practice. >> what do you think? yes. >> they are checking the menu. >> checking the menu. >> reporter: students can stay here for up to ten days to study english. the village is run by the company ybm, a giant in the education industry, together with the city of seoul. the english village is an ideal place in which to learn practical english.

but not every cram school can create a similar teaching environment and it is expensive to hire native speakers. this company has developed a system to teach basic english at low cost. this cram school started the english language program five years ago which has proved to be a big success. the school encourages children to learn english all on their own using cds and textbooks without the help of native instructors. students go over several pages of the textbooks, especially prepared by the school. then korean instructors only check their progress. park joined a class two years ago. she takes lessons five times a week for one hour a day.

>> the house burned down. >> reporter: she is a fifth grader, but she is studying a textbook for junior high school students. >> i want to be a journalist in the future and i want to interview people. >> translator: parents in south korea welcome our low-cost teaching method because it is as effective as classes taught by native speakers. >> reporter: on this day, the company's officials met with people from a japanese business partner. this south korean company is stepping up efforts to export to other parts of asia. this school in kyoto is run by the japanese firm. the emphasis on meeting local

needs has proved to be the key for the south korean company to succeed outside the country. in this class, primary school children all start with the alphabet. the school has put its own textbooks together since children in south korea have already learned the abcs in kindergarten. students in japan go to cram school about twice a week while korean students take a lesson every day. in order to get the similar results in less time, japanese schools condense the material to about 2/3 of the basic content and they add a self study part. >> translator: we hope to expand in vietnam, china and taiwan. by satisfying their local needs,

just like we have done in japan. in these countries, people need to learn english, but don't have teaching systems that don't depend on native people. >> reporter: unique teaching methods born of the desires among south korean people to improve their english language skills are spreading throughout asia. reporting for nhk world. people in china have been dealing with heavy rain for days due to the serious situation there. let's get that and more from sayaka mori at the weather desk. >> much of china has experienced heavy rain. tremendous amounts of rain fell in the beijing area which triggered flooding and landslides. yesterday, a typhoon hit southern china. you can see the expected rainfall accumulation over the next 48 hours.

it looks like inland areas like sichuan will see light showers. heavy rain is east. we will continue to see heavy rain to the north and the south. beijing will see thundershowers from today and that will continue into tomorrow and hong kong and surrounding areas. coastal areas of guangdong will see up to 150 millimeters of rain over the next 48 hours or so. these areas will continue to deal with the serious flooding situation at least for the next couple of days. as for japan, a high pressure system is keeping things dry and hot across the western half of the country. a heat advisory is in place. it looks like rain in the northern half of the country wi be dissipating as we head into tomorrow and sunny weather will return. down to the south, widespread showers are covering much of the philippines because a system

situated to the east of the country is passing the monsoon. heading into the americas. the eastern half of the u.s. is still dealing with hot and wet conditions. we are still seeing a line of thundershowers stretching from the northern plains into the eastern u.s. we will see a flooding rain continuing across minnesota and wisconsin into wednesday and there will be a risk of severe weather to the south of the great lakes region that means severe thunderstorms and large hail and damaging winds and risk of tornadoes. the reason is that we have ample moisture and hot air coming in from the south that is colliding with cooler air from the north. anywhere to the south of the area, temperatures are still on the hot side. 40 degrees in wichita. 10 degrees higher than this time of year. 38 degrees in chicago. after thursday, temperatures should get into 29 degrees across this area.

all right. finally, let's go over to europe. unstable weather and thunderstorms and gusty winds in italy will finally make its way to the north, but wet weather will continue along the west coast of norway throughout the day. heavy rain in the central locations of the british isles will be dissipating as we head into the next 24 hours. down toward the south, it is on the dry side across the iberian peninsula, but we are expecting much-needed rain on wednesday. as for the highs, many locations are experiencing above average temperatures. 31 in london. 30 in paris. 37 degrees in madrid. that's it for me now and here's your extended forecast.

and that's all for now on this edition of "newsline." i'm yuko aotani in tokyo. thank you very much for watching.