After-effects of the tsunami

It has been over five years since the tsunami leashed a wave of terror and devastation in Fukushima. We constantly read reports on how the nuclear plant is slowly limping back and how the Japanese Govt is rebuilding the razed-to-ground city.

We will probably never forget the sights on TV of the wide spread destruction there, how piles and piles of rubble, wood and even cars had to be cleaned up. We could not help but wonder how this could be cleaned by humans; it needed some supernatural hero.

Now the latest from Fukushima – the rubble has obviously been all cleared and the Govt is helping build the towns back. Some 81,300 people lived there, in what is now known as the “exclusion” zone due to radiation from the nuclear plant. The Govt spent $200 billion on getting these towns back and it has recently approved another $57 billion more to be spent over the next five years to rebuild the devastated region. Recently it “opened up” the town on Naraha and urged people to come back; the Govt built homes and roads and asked those who had left to come back.

Only 459 previous residents have returned of which 75% are over 60 years of age. The young have settled and made a life else where do not want to henceforth live any where close to a nuclear plant. Those returning do  not know how to live as what they had is no longer there – communities, friends, families, neighbours; all is gone. The Govt is giving them equipment to grow flowers as no one will buy fruits and veggies grown there due to radiation fears.

Some of the money has gone to supplying equipment to help farmers shift from growing fruit and vegetables—which consumers shun because of radiation fears—to flowers. The Govt hopes that a new set of people come and settle there, not leaving the entire abandoned, like a ghost town.