information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
24 Mars 2014
Kyodo
Residents of an evacuation zone within 20 km of the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant may be allowed to stay at their homes overnight for three months starting April 26, government sources said Sunday.
At the end of December, 330 residents of 152 households in the village of Kawauchi in Fukushima Prefecture were still living in temporary housing since the power plant was tipped into meltdown by the earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011.
They are currently allowed to visit their homes only in the daytime.
Decontamination work in the residential parts of the zone is almost complete, making overnight stays more feasible, the sources said.
The government will soon propose the plan to the village authorities and residents while looking at the possibility of lifting the evacuation order, although some remain concerned the radiation may still be high.
Meanwhile, the government has let residents in part of the city of Tamura, adjacent to Kawauchi, stay day and night since August 2013. On April 1, it will be the first area in the 20-km-radius hot zone to have its evacuation order lifted.
March 22, 2014
Fukushima villagers allowed to stay home overnight
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20140323_03.html
Japanese government officials say they will allow evacuees from the area around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to stay at their homes overnight for 3 months starting in April.
The officials want to help evacuees prepare for returning home when they lift the evacuation order.
About 270 people from 130 households in Kawauchi Village are allowed to make overnight stays at their homes from April 26th.
Officials will brief them later this month to obtain their consent.
An evacuation order forced residents in about 40 percent of the village to leave their homes after the accident at the Fukushima plant 3 years ago.
They have been able to return to visit, but not stay overnight.
The central and municipal governments are considering whether to lift the evacuation order for that part of the village. They say radiation levels in the area are relatively low and decontamination work is already complete.
But many evacuees are skeptical. They point out that some spots still register high radiation readings. They also say they cannot lead a normal life with evacuation orders still in place for nearby areas where commercial facilities are located.
The evacuation order for a part of neighboring Tamura City will end on April 1st. It will be the first time officials have lifted an evacuation order since the accident.
Mar. 22, 2014 - Updated 19:51 UTC
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