Overview

• On July 26 at around 9 pm, security guards and Saga Prefectural Police spotted three glowing objects over Units 3 and 4, triggering the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s first “nuclear material protection information” alert since 2017.
• The NRA confirmed that plant systems and external environments were unaffected before correcting its initial report to describe the intrusions as “three flying lights” rather than confirmed drones.
• Kyushu Electric and police have conducted extensive sweeps without locating any devices and told Genkai Town officials that the lights were visible for about two hours with a roughly 30-minute delay in formal notification.
• Genkai Town Mayor Waki Shintarō, Saga Prefectural Vice Governor Hirao Ken and Karatsu City crisis managers have formally requested installation of upward-looking sensors and faster information-sharing protocols.
• Experts warn that existing defenses built for manned aircraft leave a coverage gap against small unmanned vehicles, spurring calls for regulatory updates and operational reforms.