ID :
170869
Fri, 03/25/2011 - 19:21
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https://oananews.org//node/170869
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FOCUS: Residents feel isolated in movement-restricted areas near nuke plant
TOKYO, March 25 Kyodo -
While residents who live closest to the troubled nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture have evacuated, those who have remained in a movement-restricted area 20 to 30 kilometers away from the plant say they are feeling increasingly ''isolated.''
Towns were abandoned by many people apparently scared by the government's instruction to shelter indoors for fear of radiation exposure, local people said.
Residents said they were also troubled by a misperception prevalent among people outside the area that they live in ''a contaminated area,'' expressing discontent about what they see as slow actions for help by the central government.
Against such a misleading notion, deliveries of daily necessities from outside the region have been made difficult as transport companies are apparently refusing to access the area. Access to community services has also been restricted.
The devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami jolted northeastern Japan including Fukushima Prefecture, which hosts Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant that was crippled in the disaster.
Concerned about possible radiation exposure, the government soon issued directives to people who live close to the plant either to evacuation or stay indoors.
But as a series of further troubles brewed and reports of radiation leaks ensued at one of Japan's biggest nuclear power complexes, the government expanded coverage of its evacuation and shelter directives.
On March 15, a directive was issued to around 140,000 people who live 20 to 30 kilometers from the plant to remain indoors while those who live closer to the plant were asked to evacuate.
One week after March 15, people said a complete silence has descended on the area covered by the directive in Minamisoma in the prefecture. Doors and windows were tightly shut at shops, and almost no one has been seen on the streets except municipal government employees in protective gear who occasionally came to deliver supplies.
A female employee at the city office told Kyodo News over the phone, ''I wonder how many people are still staying here. We don't have a complete picture of the situation. The city office itself can no longer maintain its services.''
Many people apparently have locked themselves up at their homes, making it hard to stay in constant touch with neighbors, if any.
Asked why they have decided to stay, some said they have lost contact with family members following the magnitude 9.0 quake and they want to reach out to them as soon as possible when those missing people are found.
There is a chronic lack of gasoline, foods and other supplies. City officials said they were told by a gasoline delivery company that they can only go as far as Koriyama city in the prefecture, southwest of Minamisoma, outside the movement-restricted area.
A resident who happened to have a license to handle hazardous materials, required for gasoline transport, had to drive 80 kilometers one way to get any gas, according to the officials.
Voices of discontent were also growing among residents about a lack of supplies when they were struggling under the state directive. On Tuesday, the city set up a center for consolidating supplies from various sources in adjacent Soma city, some 40 km from the nuclear power plant.
The restricted area encompasses Minamisoma and eight other municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture. The majority of residents have left these cities, towns and villages to places even outside the prefecture.
An official at the disaster response division at the prefectural government said, ''Merchandise distribution stops and people leave. A sense of uneasiness is then fanned, pushing even more residents out and crippling a town's functions. It's a vicious cycle.''
Local government officials said people outside the area tend to think that the designated areas are ''towns contaminated by highly concentrated radioactive materials.''
The Minamisoma city government said radiation in the city as of 3 p.m. Wednesday was 1.64 microsieverts, a level not considered harmful to human health. A city official said, ''After the nuclear plant accidents, volunteers left all together, fearing exposure to radioactive substances.''
In a bid to dispel such misperceptions, the prefectural government has taken actions such as inviting experts in radiation medicine to give briefings to residents in the surrounding areas.
Municipal officials within the designated area question the way the central government has demarcated the region. An official of Katsurao village said, ''The problem lies with the state delineating the areas for evacuating and staying indoors in a pedantic fashion simply based on distance. They should also consider wind directions and geographical features.''
The government appears poised to consider providing support to residents even if they move out of the area but those staying are increasingly worried. An official of Minamisoma city, said, ''I would hope the stay-indoors directive will be eliminated or better yet an evacuation order issued.''
Prefectural officials said they had been preoccupied with relocating hospitalized patients and institutionalized elderly people. A ranking official said, ''It had never occurred to us that we would have to think about what to do with people staying on. We have not yet grasped enough information, such as what they need.''
On Friday, the central government said it is encouraging people in the shelter area to move voluntarily further away, while noting the government has no plans to expand the designated area, given no fresh information about radiation exposure levels.
While residents who live closest to the troubled nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture have evacuated, those who have remained in a movement-restricted area 20 to 30 kilometers away from the plant say they are feeling increasingly ''isolated.''
Towns were abandoned by many people apparently scared by the government's instruction to shelter indoors for fear of radiation exposure, local people said.
Residents said they were also troubled by a misperception prevalent among people outside the area that they live in ''a contaminated area,'' expressing discontent about what they see as slow actions for help by the central government.
Against such a misleading notion, deliveries of daily necessities from outside the region have been made difficult as transport companies are apparently refusing to access the area. Access to community services has also been restricted.
The devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami jolted northeastern Japan including Fukushima Prefecture, which hosts Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant that was crippled in the disaster.
Concerned about possible radiation exposure, the government soon issued directives to people who live close to the plant either to evacuation or stay indoors.
But as a series of further troubles brewed and reports of radiation leaks ensued at one of Japan's biggest nuclear power complexes, the government expanded coverage of its evacuation and shelter directives.
On March 15, a directive was issued to around 140,000 people who live 20 to 30 kilometers from the plant to remain indoors while those who live closer to the plant were asked to evacuate.
One week after March 15, people said a complete silence has descended on the area covered by the directive in Minamisoma in the prefecture. Doors and windows were tightly shut at shops, and almost no one has been seen on the streets except municipal government employees in protective gear who occasionally came to deliver supplies.
A female employee at the city office told Kyodo News over the phone, ''I wonder how many people are still staying here. We don't have a complete picture of the situation. The city office itself can no longer maintain its services.''
Many people apparently have locked themselves up at their homes, making it hard to stay in constant touch with neighbors, if any.
Asked why they have decided to stay, some said they have lost contact with family members following the magnitude 9.0 quake and they want to reach out to them as soon as possible when those missing people are found.
There is a chronic lack of gasoline, foods and other supplies. City officials said they were told by a gasoline delivery company that they can only go as far as Koriyama city in the prefecture, southwest of Minamisoma, outside the movement-restricted area.
A resident who happened to have a license to handle hazardous materials, required for gasoline transport, had to drive 80 kilometers one way to get any gas, according to the officials.
Voices of discontent were also growing among residents about a lack of supplies when they were struggling under the state directive. On Tuesday, the city set up a center for consolidating supplies from various sources in adjacent Soma city, some 40 km from the nuclear power plant.
The restricted area encompasses Minamisoma and eight other municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture. The majority of residents have left these cities, towns and villages to places even outside the prefecture.
An official at the disaster response division at the prefectural government said, ''Merchandise distribution stops and people leave. A sense of uneasiness is then fanned, pushing even more residents out and crippling a town's functions. It's a vicious cycle.''
Local government officials said people outside the area tend to think that the designated areas are ''towns contaminated by highly concentrated radioactive materials.''
The Minamisoma city government said radiation in the city as of 3 p.m. Wednesday was 1.64 microsieverts, a level not considered harmful to human health. A city official said, ''After the nuclear plant accidents, volunteers left all together, fearing exposure to radioactive substances.''
In a bid to dispel such misperceptions, the prefectural government has taken actions such as inviting experts in radiation medicine to give briefings to residents in the surrounding areas.
Municipal officials within the designated area question the way the central government has demarcated the region. An official of Katsurao village said, ''The problem lies with the state delineating the areas for evacuating and staying indoors in a pedantic fashion simply based on distance. They should also consider wind directions and geographical features.''
The government appears poised to consider providing support to residents even if they move out of the area but those staying are increasingly worried. An official of Minamisoma city, said, ''I would hope the stay-indoors directive will be eliminated or better yet an evacuation order issued.''
Prefectural officials said they had been preoccupied with relocating hospitalized patients and institutionalized elderly people. A ranking official said, ''It had never occurred to us that we would have to think about what to do with people staying on. We have not yet grasped enough information, such as what they need.''
On Friday, the central government said it is encouraging people in the shelter area to move voluntarily further away, while noting the government has no plans to expand the designated area, given no fresh information about radiation exposure levels.
