Iodine tablets for some of the residents around Sendai

November 15, 2015

People near Sendai plant given iodine tablets

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/nuclear.html

Nov. 15, 2015 - Updated 10:21 UTC+1

Authorities in the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima have distributed iodine tablets to people living near Japan's only online nuclear plant.

Iodine helps to prevent the thyroid gland from absorbing radioactive substances in the event of a nuclear accident.

On Sunday, officials from the prefecture and Satsumasendai City handed out tablets to about 100 people who had consulted doctors at the venue.

The guidelines that the government established after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident state that iodine should be distributed to people living within 5 kilometers of a nuclear plant.

But nearly 1,300 residents, or about 30 percent of those living near the Sendai plant, have not collected their tablets even after the reactors were restarted.

Prefectural and city officials have been receiving complaints from people who don't fully understand how to use the iodine tablets. In August, city officials began visiting the homes of people who had still not picked them up.

Sunday's distribution was the first since the plant was put back online. Officials say they will work to ensure that all residents of the zone have supplies of the medication.