Today,
Pyongyang vowed retaliation for the new sanctions
the UN Security Council unanimously adopted on Saturday against North Korea,
in response to its latest missile tests.
The measure came on the eve of the 72nd anniversary of the attack on Hiroshima,
an event that burned the threat of atomic warfare into the Japanese psyche.
And with a nuclear loose cannon just 700 miles away,
many Japanese are already preparing for the worst.
— For the first time,
the Japanese government has asked districts
to conduct evacuation drills for a North Korean missile attack.
— North Korea has conducted 14 missile tests since the beginning of the year—
11 of them landed in seas surrounding Japan.
Anxiety is so high that some Japanese are taking more serious precautions.
— Nobuko Oribe is the director of a company
that has been selling emergency bunkers and other disaster supplies for more than 30 years.
Air filters are one of their most popular products,
and they can’t keep them in stock.
— Oribe also offers a fully-stocked bunker,
costing upwards of $200,000.
She says sales of these has tripled since North Korea escalated its missile testing.
— Those who can’t afford one of Oribe’s bunkers
are putting together their own stashes of emergency supplies.
— This retired engineer,
who goes by the handle Yappaw Hirose,
started a blog where he shares tips on how to protect yourself during a nuclear attack.
— These evacuation drills are taking place across Japan,
as a once-distant threat comes closer and attempts to contain it continue to fail.