FUKUSHIMA--Residents forced to evacuate due to high levels of radiation from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant returned to their homes for a few hours May 26 in Namie and Futaba.
FUKUSHIMA--Residents forced to evacuate due to high levels of radiation from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant returned to their homes for a few hours May 26 in Namie and Futaba.
Some of the residents, wearing protective suits, placed flowers at altars set up by the town for family members or other people killed in the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
About 20,000 people living in 7,300 households have evacuated Namie, part of which is within the government's 20-kilometer no-entry zone from the plant.
Of them, 111 people in 63 households took part in the latest return program.
They gathered in the Baji-koen equestrian park in Minami-Soma city, a northern neighbor of Namie, donned their protective suits, and headed for Namie on seven buses.
Sixty residents of 32 households from Futaba, which hosts the nuclear plant, gathered at the Furumichi Gymnasium in Tamura, west of Futaba, and headed for their hometown on three buses.
According to the government's road map, the temporary return program applies to nine municipalities in areas surrounding the nuclear plant. Residents who wish to take part in the program can do so by mid-July at the latest.
However, the number of buses that can enter the no-entry zone is insufficient. In addition, the clerical work required for the program is huge. The schedule for visits could be pushed back.