Monday, September 10, 2012

Where is Odaka town?

I hadn't realized the disaster had been long gone from people's minds outside Fukushima even though it's been only 18 months. People asked me where Odaka town was, the place where Rev. Ishiguro drove us into the 20 KM evacuation zone. So here is the map of the 30 KM radius area from the Fukushima Daichii plant.



Events related to evacuation in chronological order


March 11, 2011:
M 9.0 earthquake and tsunami were followed by melt-downs in Fukushima Daichii nuclear plant.

March 12, 2011:
The Japanese government ordered the evacuation of more than 100,000 residents within a 20 KM radius of Fukushima Daichii nuclear plant

March 15, 2011:
The government advised residents in the 20-30 KM radius area to stay indoors and declared the area a “voluntary evacuation zone,” meaning that evacuees would receive no financial compensation.

September 30, 2011:
The voluntary evacuation zone (20-30 KM) re-opened. The Stay-Indoors order was lifted. Some residents started returning but many towns and villages are still uninhabitable.

April, 2012:
The government gradually opened some areas within the 20 KM zone wherever radiation levels are not too risky. Only daytime visits are allowed: no overnight stays. Odaka town, 12 KM northwest of the crippled nuclear plant, reopened for daytime visits.

For more detailed information: 
About Tohoku disaster overall and a larger map of the disaster affected areas, I recommend this website (http://www.jcie.org/311recovery/background.html). This is a New York based research think-tank which collected information last year from organizations (both governmental and nongovernmental) to assess the level of recovery assistance (I also received an email to provide information to them). 

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