The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster, it was caused by the massive tsunami triggered
by the Tohoku Earthquake on March 11th, 2011. Flooding from seawater damaged cooling systems
needed to keep the reactors from overheating. This in turn caused three radioactive meltdowns
and the widespread release of radioactive material
This was a Level 7 nuclear event comparable only to Chernobyl
If you want to know more about specifically the Tohoku Earthquake & Tsunami
the event that caused this nuclear crisis, please check out my last '10 Things You Didn’t Know' video
Alright, Fukushima, 10 things, let’s get into it!
The Fukushima nuclear disaster was essentially a man-made disaster
despite the earthquake and tsunami
You had poor organisational and regulatory systems in place
An overly cozy relationship between government and industry
that resulted in shady practices. Also ingrained conventions of Japanese culture,
which many find quite appealing, was actually a detriment during the crisis
inducing slow and inefficient decision-making. In fact, before the disaster even happened
there were industry experts who warned of mega tsunami-generating earthquakes
hitting the area every 800 to 1100 years with the next one being overdue
They made clear action needed to be taken to avoid a nuclear catastrophe
But those in charge dismissed such warnings insisting tsunami heights
based off a 9th century old earthquake wasn’t worth considering
It was never going to happen...
During the crisis at Fukushima, high radiation levels at the plant
made it desperately hard for human workers
to do what they needed to do. The US sent robots to assist them
but they were of limited speed and range. They weren’t really that good
What they really needed were functional radiation-resistant robots
with a full range of motion. You would think they’d have those in Japan
but, they don’t. Well not anymore
Back in 2001, the Japanese had actually developed extremely capable robots
that were deemed technical successes. But then a government task force
which included some familiar faces, concluded that a Chernobyl-scale disaster
was never going to happen in Japan. The robots were unnecessary
The program was shut down and the robots were dismantled or donated
That was a mistake
The Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant was the closest power power plant
to the earthquake epicentre, half the distance of Fukushima Daiichi
yet it successfully withstood the barrage
While the Fukushima Plant had sea walls up to 5.7 meters, Onagawa had it up to 14 meters
preventing serious damage and radioactive releases
The funny thing is, while in Fukushima,
everyone was trying to get as far AWAY as possible from the nuclear plant
In Onagawa
residents who lost their homes were taking refuge
AT the nuclear plant
Hundreds of thousands of people within 20 to 30 km
of the Fukushima complex were evacuated. Unfortunately, due to miscommunication between
the evacuation authorities and the experts who were analysing the fallout
many residents were evacuated from pretty safe areas
right INTO the radioactive plume
Here’s a sad fact: More people were killed by the evacuation process in Fukushima
than by the actual earthquake and tsunami, the disaster itself
People died of fatigue, exhaustion
illness, suicides
Losing their homes, not knowing where they'd end up
cramped evacuation centres. The whole ordeal was taxing
Actually, there would have been way less casualties if residents never even evacuated
despite the radiation
After the Fukushima disaster, random radiation hot spots
were discovered in unexpected locations mainly due to drainage or gutter issues
Radiation levels as high as those in the no-go zone
were detected as far as some Tokyo suburbs
We’re talking about really small concentrated hot spots here, not mass irradiation of cities
But still, that can be a serious cause for concern
which prompted many Japanese residents to take up a new hobby
No, not tennis or stamp collecting
but walking with Geiger-counters through their city or village
in search for random radiation levels to report. Like searching for gold
55 year old Naoto Matsumura is the only man brave enough
to live in Fukushima’s no-go zone. After the initial evacuation, he returned back
to take care of the animals that were left behind
Not just his animals, but everyone’s
Many were left chained up by their owners or locked up in barns
frantically abandoned in the radioactive aftermath. He let them all go
They now roam freely on the streets of what can only be described as
…Post-Apocalyptic Fukushima
Like something out of ‘I Am Legend’
If you look at Fukushima today, it really looks like the set of ‘The Walking Dead’
Anyway, the government has actively tried to stop Matsumura
from staying within the contaminated city but he pretty much ignores them
In his mind, he has to stay.
He knows the animals have no one else to rely on for food
He’s aware of the harmful effects of the radiation
but refuses to worry about it, he says:
Some people think the radiation levels were so bad
that mutations and deformities were going on left and right
Which isn’t true. But there were a few small scale discoveries in the aftermath
Such as:
Mutated trees
Deformed daisy flowers (though these can occur in nature as well)
DNA damaged worms
not so much mutations, but radioactive tuna (only trace amounts though)
Cows with random white spots
Mutated butterflies
Actually that last one was most surprising to scientists because
insects are believed to be very resistant to radiation
Add to that these mutations were passed down through generations
starting with butterflies that existed at the time of the Fukushima incident
So they were inherited mutations
We saw some horrific things at Chernobyl: Acute radiation syndrome
deformities, death
Nothing like that happened at Fukushima, despite the perception of some
No one died from radiation exposure. And contrary to a well-publicised
yet poorly-executed, study that made the rounds in 2015
thyroid cancer rates in Fukushima children were actually
lower than the national average
Naoto Kan, Japan’s Prime Minister during the crisis
revealed at one point Japan faced a situation where it was possible
that people might no longer have been able to live in the capital
where tens of millions of people would have been forced to flee Tokyo
Japan’s densely populated eastern seaboard could have been left uninhabitable
The nation’s existence could have been threatened
Ok this all sounds like a bit of an exaggeration
but, maybe not. Because it kind of almost happened
Masao Yoshida was the manager of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant
and on March 15th 2011, four days into the nuclear crisis
he lead a brave group, now dubbed 'The Fukushima 50’ into the radioactive trenches
These were the remaining plant employees who chose to stay and risk their lives
amidst high radiation levels to bring the overheated reactors under control
Now with cooling systems crippled and having run out of fresh water
Yoshida decided they would pump seawater straight from the ocean
into the damaged reactors. But, he was running out of time
Then in a scene reminiscent of '24' corporate headquarters ordered him to stop the seawater injection
Yeah them again
They didn’t want corrosive seawater to permanently damage their reactors
They’d lose a lot of money
Feeling his superiors were inept for risking a colossal radioactive fallout
Yoshida disobeyed the direct order
and continued with the seawater injection
Many experts now agree that his actions on that day
arguably prevented a much greater catastrophe
one that former Prime Minister Naoto Kan feared would become a reality
After the crisis was over, Yoshida was reprimanded by TEPCO execs for his disobedience
But I guess it didn’t really matter because to most
he was hailed as a hero
In a culture where people are super reluctant to question authority
Yoshida stood out to his peers as different
A strong-minded individual, not afraid to go against the grain
And as a result, he saved a lot of people
I hope you all enjoyed that video, I certainly enjoyed making it
Don’t forget to check out my 10 Things You Didn’t Know About
The 2011 Tohoku Earthquake & Tsunami video if you haven’t already
I’ll also link some of my other ’10 Things’ videos on the side if you’re interested
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