Lawyers for the plaintiffs hold a news conference on Feb. 19 after the Tokyo High Court found the central government equally liable in connection with the triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. (Yuta Ogi) Yet another high court has found the central government as liable as Tokyo Electric Power Co. for not taking steps to prevent the triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in 2011. The Tokyo High Court's Feb. 19 decision was based on the issuance of a report that pointed to the possibility of a large tsunami striking the Fukushima area. It determined that the central government's failure to act on the report's findings was “illegal” and ordered it and TEPCO to pay a total of about 280 million yen ($2.7 million) to 43 plaintiffs now living in Chiba Prefecture.