Following The Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011, a serious disaster, the meltdown of the reactor core, occurred at the Tokyo Electric Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The accident, which was rated at level 7 according to the IAEA's International Nuclear Event Scale, spewed large amounts of radioactive matter in the area, and has brought severe hardship to the people especially of Fukushima prefecture.
Visiting restrictions are still in order for the affected towns and villages, and the roadmap to decommissioning the reactors is still unclear. While time goes by and the shock and memories of the accident fade, the suffering in Fukushima will continue for many years. I will continue reporting about the accident and related matters as a series of stories.

 

 

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March 11             The Great East Japan Earthquake occurs. Tokyo Electric Power Co., Inc. (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station is hit by the resulting tsunami.

 

March 12             Hydrogen explosion at building housing nuclear reactor #1. Evacuation orders expanded to 20km radius.

 

March 14             Hydrogen Explosion at building housing nuclear reactor #3.

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March 15             Hydrogen Explosion at building housing nuclear reactor #4. Residents between the 20-30km radius ordered to stay indoors.

 

April 22              The Government designates 20km within the nuclear plant a "no-go zone", basically prohibiting entry. Some areas outside of the "no-go zone" with high radiation levels are designated as "planned evacuation zones".

 

December 16      The Government and TEPCO announce that the plant has reached cold shutdown and declare the accident over.

 

 

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April 1               Reorganization of the no-go zone begins in Kawauchi Town and Tamura City. Later, 11 cities, towns and villages are reorganized as "difficult-to-return zones", "habitation restricted zones" and "preparation zones awaiting restriction order lift".

 

 

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August 8            Evacuation areas in Kawamata Town are reorganized, completing the reorganizing of all 11 cities, towns and villages.

 

 

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August 30        Fukushima Governor Yuhei Sato accepts government plans to build an interim storage facility in Okuma Town and Futaba Town to house tainted surface soil and other hazardous waste for a maximum of thirty years.

 

As of October 2014     Eighty thousand residents are still forced to live away from their homes as a result of the nuclear accident.