Fukushima after Great East Japan Earthquake

Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami

In 2011, March 11th 14:46, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake occurred in east Japan, it is called the Great East Japan Earthquake. 50 minutes later, the tsunami started hitting coastal areas. Fukushima prefecture is in east Japan ( highlighted in red in the map ), 4,147 people were killed by the tsunami. But this was not the only tragedy for people in Fukushima. 15 metre tsunami which was an expected height went over breakwaters and hit Uni 1 – 4 in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant ( it is called ‘1F’ ). It caused a hydrogen explosion on Unit 1 on March 12th. On March 14th and 15th, hydrogen explosions happened to Unit 3 and 4, too. Due to radioactive pollution, residents lived in 20km from 1F were forced to evacuate to safer areas. 13 years after, decontamination work has still been in progress, there are still no entry zones in the 7 towns. Even in places the evacuation order has been lifted, not so many residents have come back. We had a valuable experience by joining a tour. We visited the area stuck, off-limits areas including the nuclear power plant. More details about the tour are described in the bottom of this page.

Tsunami went over breakwaters in 1F ( from TEPCO home page )

Unit 1 in 1F after the hydrogen explosion ( from bousai.go.jp )

Ukedo Primary School

The tsunami hit Ukedo Primary School was inundated by the tsunami and 1st floor was damaged a lot, but teachers and students in the school building were safely evacuated to higher ground before the tsunami reached them, thus avoiding any casualties. Impressively a boy student who knew a shortcut to higher ground navigated teachers and students there because teachers trusted him. Now the school building is open for public as earthquake-devastated remains. Open 9:00 – 16:30 ( 16:00 last entry time ), Close Tuesdays and New Year holidays ( open if Monday is a holiday, closed the next day ) , the fee is 300 yen for adult, 200 yen for high school student, 100 yen for junior high school student, other is free.

The school building. 1st floor was destroyed by the tsunami but 2nd floor has no damage.

Somehow 3 laptops remained unswept by the tsunami

Photos of Ukedo Pimary School ( circled in red ) and around before and after the tsunami. These are displayed in the display booth on 2nd floor.

Messages from the students years after the earthquake on 2nd floor

Exclusion zone

As of 2025, 7 municipalities ( Iidate-village, Minami Soma city, Kuzuo-village, Namie-town, Futaba-town, Okuma-town and Tomioka-town ) still have exclusion zones due to radiation. Those zones are not permitted to enter without screening and a permission. We were allowed to enter with a resident who lost his family by the tsunami and now is a storyteller.

Firstly, we visited Kuma-machi Primary School. A radiation measurement in the right display 2.111 mSv/h. The tsunami didn’t reach the school. But all students and teachers in the school took action to evacuate.

Sv/h : sievert per hour
mSv/h : millisievert per hour that a person to be exposed by radiation. 1/1000Sv

μSv/h : microsievert per hour. 1/1000 mSv/h

General people should not exceed 1 mSv in a year.
People who work with radiation as a profession shouldn’t exceed 50 mSv in a year, 100 mSv in 5 years

Dictionaries, notebooks remain on desks, shoes remain in shoes rockers since 2011 March 11. It shows students left the school with indoor shoes.

There were a Shinto shrine archway, a small shrine next to the public hall. The small shrine wasn’t swept away by the tsunami. The side of the public hall faces to the sea was destroyed by the tsunami. People in the public hall were swept away but they were able to survive because of the trees in the shrine stopped them and they could hold the trees.

Newly constructed embankments but nobody will be allowed to live in this area permanently.

Storyteller’s house was there. The most of his young daughter’s bones haven’t been found yet. His handmade Buddhist altar for his father and daughter is on the top of the hill.

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant ( 1F )

Fukushima Daiich Nuclear Power Plant is called 1F. ( Fukushima Daini Neclear Power Plant is called 2F ). It is unusual to give a name of prefecture to a nuclear power plant instead of a town name, the name ‘Fukushima’ resulted financial damage for Fukushima prefecture caused by harmful rumours or misinformation for a long time after the tsunami and the hydrogen explosions in 1F.

Entry in 1F is restricted by TEPCO and the Japanese government. The tour we joined gave us a chance to visit there, we were navigated by a bureaucrat in Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry but cameras, smart phones and smart watches are prohibited to bring due to the security policy. Only he can take photos and share them with us after a security check.

Companies’ logos who have been cooperating for the decommission

A fire-engine used for firefighting in 2011 March. Due to its radioactive contamination, it can’t be moved outside 1F.

Radioactive contaminated cars. Decontamination of inside of cars is considered to be impossible. These cars can’t be moved outside 1F.

Unit2, 3 and 4. A hydrogen explosion didn’t occur in Unit 2 because a door was accidentally open by the tsunami and hydrogen gas was flowing outside which was even worse than the case of Unit 1.

Unit1. After the tsunami hit, it lost power, necessary water to cool down the inside wasn’t supplied, it caused a meltdown,
increased hydrogen gas inside, as a result, the hydrogen explosion happened next day on March 12th. Nobody knows how much contaminated debris by meltdown left inside.

Unit 2 and 3. Unit 4 is in the right side. Unit 4 was not operational as well as Unit 5 and 6 in 2011. A hydrogen explosion occurred in Unit 3 on March 14th but it didn’t occur in Unit 2 because a window was open by the tsunami hit accidentally. However, more radioactive flew out from the window.

The radioactive measure shows 45.5 μSv/h ( 0.0455 mSv/h )

Surge tank – the lower part of the tank was dented by the tsunami attack.

Tanks of ALPS treated water. The water needs to purified of radioactive substances other than tritium until it meets safety standards.

The panel shows a cross-sectional view of the ALPS treated water discharge system, an image of the ALPS treated water discharge outlet and a photograph of the sea showing the location of the water discharge outlet. Alpus treated water is outlet only after strict checks are cleared. If not cleared, another round of radioactivity purification will be done.

Riprun Fukushima

Riprun Fukushima is a hands-on information center where visitors can learn about the landfill disposal of waste contaminated by radioactive materials from the accident at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. In their monitoring field, we can experience of radiation measurement. Making a reservation by telephone ( English is available ) is recommended. Free admission, open 9:00 – 17:00, closed on Mondays, year-end and New Year holidays. ( In case Monday is a holiday, open. Closed on Tuesday )

The above diorama shows the interim storage for the landfill disposal of waste contaminated

The map of the monitoring field and Riprun Fukushima

Radiation detector(left picture), the detector (right picture) shows 0.23mSv in the mixed forest in the monitoring field. ( example : 0.01mSv with a X-ray inspection, 0.1mSv for a return flight New York – Tokyo, 6760 miles )

Measuring radiation in the mixed forest in the monitoring field.

Interim storage located around Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. A discussion where to move the landfill disposal of waste contaminated after its shelf life is still in progress.

Tepco decommission archive centre

It is hard to imagine what are inside of the building from outside looking

Nuclear reactor’s fuel rods. Nuclear fuel pellets are contained inside. ( Fission prone uranium (U) 235 4% and hard to fission uranium 238 96% )

All short movies in this facility can be ran by a button, Japanese and English versions are available. You will hear apology greetings by TEPCO multiple times that they couldn’t predict such a tsunami and protect 1F.

In 2024 October, TEPCO successfully extracted sample fuel debris for detailed analysis.

This short movie explains how staff in the main control centre handled post-accident after the hydrogen explosions in 1F.

The Great East Japan Earthquake and Nuclear Disaster Memorial Museum

Fukushima prefecture opened The Great East Japan Earthquake and Nuclear Disaster Memorial Museum in Futaba town in 2020 September. Futaba town is one of places hit by the tsunami. The space around the museum is still almost empty as everything was swept away. Exhibitions show multiple disasters in Fukushima caused by the earthquake, tsunami, and TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident as well as the progress to reconstruction.

Open 9:00-17:00 ( last entry 16:30 ) Closed Tuesday, Dec 29 – Jan 3rd. Admission fee – adult 600 yen, school students 300 yen, preschooler free

The message in the board tells ‘Nuclear power such a bright future energies’. People lived near 1F had no doubt that nuclear power was a safe form of energy.

The monitor on the left hand describes a hydrogen explosion didn’t occur in Unit 2 but maximum amount of radioactive material was released. On the right hand, there are photos of people worked in 1F after the accident.

This panel describes about interim storages of the landfill disposal of waste contaminated

Reconstruction efforts

In Fukushima, to promote reconstruction, 15 municipalities in the area stuck have been registered as Special Zones for Industrial Reconstruction and Investment Promotion. Special tax measures are provided for business operators implementing recovery promotion projects in the zones.

A main hall of in the combined kindergarten, elementary, junior high and high school in Okuma town

Okuma Exchange Zone is open in Okuma town in 2021, it has a hotel with hot springs ‘Hot Okuma’, a conference hall, a gym, casual restaurants etc. The 2 photos are of a bedroom and a living room for Twin in ‘Hot Okuma’. 9,900 yen per night for 2 people. ( 7,700 yen for Okuma town residents )

Left : a ginjo sake without adding extra alcohol and pasteurization ‘Kaeru-no-utage’ ( frog’s party ) produced by a limited liability company Kawauchi-ya in Kawauchi village next to Tomioka town. It is made from a sake rice variety ‘Yume-no-kaori’ which had been newly developed in Fukushima.

Right : ginger enzyme syrup produced by TASHIRO FARM in Okuma town and it is made from their ginger ‘Okuma ginger’ without adding any sugar content in Okuma-town.

The above are vineyards of Tomioka Winery. The winery has been started by a Tomioka town resident Mr. Endo in 2018 after pilot cultivation of grapes was successful that they started it in the vineyards in 2016. Currently they are producing Syrah and Sable wines. They want to revitalise the town through wine making interaction with many people. They regularly recruit volunteers on social networking sites to help with weeding, seedling planting, etc.Also, they are planning to open a winery restaurant near JR Tomioka station in 2025.

In Kawauchi village, there is Mt.Hirabu mountain (845m) and Hirabu bog where Forest green tree frogs are living. That is a hint of the name of the sake ‘Kaeru no Utage’ ( Frog’s party ). The bog is on the top of Mt.Hirabu. The frogs can be found between June and mid-July. Starry sky is beautiful for fine days. Hot spring ‘Kawauchi-no-yu,’ a hotel ‘Business Hotel Kawauchi’, a camping site and cottages are open. https://a-kawauchi.com/#news.

Eggs of Forest green tree frogs : from Fukushima tourism site

Fukushima Densho Study Tour

‘Fukushima Densho Study Tour‘ ( Fukushima hand down study tour) takes place once every month for 2 nights 3 days, 26,000 yen per person ( charges at Hot Okuma hotel, simple breakfast and dinner are included ). 10 people are capacity per tour. Yealy schedule should be up in January. Sign-up of the tour needs to be done on their home page. Currently Japanese language only but if a Japanese speaker is in your group and you can understand English, the organizers would help with you joining the tour. The organizers will pick you up at JR Fukushima station where takes 1.5 hour from JR Tokyo station by Tohoku Shinkansen ‘Yamabiko’.