The Yomiuri Shimbun
Not enough explanation. Not enough help. And not enough time.
Residents of five municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture have been disheartened and confused by the government's decision to newly designate these areas as planned evacuation zones due to radiation leaks from a crippled nuclear power plant.
The residents could have to leave their homes within a month.
"What should I do with my cows?" a cattle farmer in one town said. Another resident said: "[The government's] explanation left many questions unanswered. I don't know what to do."
The entire village of Iitatemura has been designated as a deliberate evacuation area. Iitatemura Mayor Norio Kanno explained the government plan to the head of each administrative area in the village Monday.
"It's very regrettable [that Iitatemura was included], but we don't have any option but to ask residents to leave the village for the time being," Kanno said. The village will decide later where and how to evacuate residents.
According to Kaname Hirose, superintendent of schools in Iitatemura, this uncertainty has prevented primary and middle schools in the village from scheduling ceremonies held to mark the new academic year.
Before the crisis erupted, these schools had been planning to hold ceremonies on April 20 or later.
The village office held a meeting for companies based in the village, too.
Kazuhiro Hayashi, 67, president of a parts processing company, was unconvinced by what he heard at the meeting.
"Why was our village designated as a deliberate evacuation area even though radiation levels have fallen?" he said. "In the worst-case scenario, I'll have to lay off my employees."
After the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, Hayashi's company continued operating a factory that makes parts for precision instruments such as cameras. It operated at full capacity with about 70 workers, including some who had been fired by other companies. Hayashi is not prepared to shut his factory when jobs are at stake.
"If the government won't guarantee the livelihoods of my employees, I'll operate our factory until the government orders us [to stop]," Hayashi said.
A 61-year-old farmer in Iitatemura who raises prime beef cattle is refusing to leave the town and the cattle he considers "like family."
"We've constantly improved the quality of our beef over the years. Even if an evacuation order is issued, I can't leave now. I'll stay here with my cattle until the end," he said.
Part of Kawamatamachi has been designated as a deliberate evacuation area. High levels of radioactive cesium were detected in the Yamakiya district in the eastern part of the town, forcing farmers to stop working in their fields.
A 64-year-old farmer who raises about 80 cows in Yamakiya has mixed feelings about whether to stay or go.
"If I could leave, I'd want to do that. But I have my cows here," she said. "I don't know what to do."
Many parts of Minami-Soma have been designated as areas where residents are urged to stay indoors since March 11. But complicating matters, the city has both a deliberate evacuation area and an "emergency evacuation preparation area," where residents are asked to always be prepared to stay indoors.
A disaster safety division chief of the city, feels the blame for this confusion rests with the government.
"The government didn't give us any information in advance. We have to quickly figure out where to draw the line that separates the areas," the official said.
According to the official, more than 30,000 people are still in the city. Asked about the city's plan to reopen primary and middle schools that would hold ceremonies for the new academic year in late April, he said, "We might have to review the timing."
Residents who evacuated earlier--in the expectation it would only be temporary--also have been disappointed by the latest developments.
Kotoko Okamura, 54, who worked in the fishing industry in Namiemachi--a town designated Monday as a deliberate evacuation area--is staying at a Fukushima hotel. Although she longs to return, she is not sure when, or whether, she can go back.
"I think I won't be able to return to my hometown again," Okamura said.
The March 11 tsunami destroyed Okamura's house. She took shelter at an evacuation center with her husband and second-eldest son.
"I wanted to return to our town if the nuclear power plant is brought under control," she said.
But Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano's announcement Monday that the evacuation areas were being expanded shattered her hopes.
"Where can I go next? I want the government to give more consideration to people like me who have no place to go," Okamura said.
Masamichi Nishio, president of the National Hospital Organization Hokkaido Cancer Center, believes the government should have given more thorough explanations about the situation.
"Considering the possible health risks to children and pregnant women, setting up deliberate evacuation areas and emergency evacuation preparation areas makes sense," Nishio said.
"But the government should explain to residents the reasons for the evacuations and provide detailed data and science-based information about health effects. The government also should help residents prepare to evacuate and get their lives back in order. Giving ambiguous explanations will only confuse residents," he said.
(Apr. 13, 2011)
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