Japan’s recovery from tsunami disaster, in numbers

TOKYO (AP) – Ten years after a massive earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan’s northeast coast leading to meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, much has been achieved in disaster-stricken areas, but they are still recovering. Figures show how much progress has been made and what remains.

9.0 EARTHQUAKE

The 9.0 magnitude earthquake was one of the strongest ever. It struck offshore at 2:46 PM, triggering a sky-high tsunami that hit land within half an hour.

18,426 DEATH

The National Police Agency says 18,426 people died, mainly during the tsunami, of which 2,527 people were not recovered. Local authorities still regularly search at sea and along the coast for traces of missing persons. None of the fatalities have been directly linked to radiation.

42,500 PEOPLE WERE NOT RETURNED

In the northeast region, nearly half a million people were displaced. Ten years later, 42,565 people, including 35,725 from Fukushima, were still unable to return home.

$ 295 BILLION COST

The government has spent 32 trillion yen ($ 295 billion) on restoring the region, including the construction of roads, seawalls and houses, and supporting people’s livelihoods. In addition, Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the destroyed nuclear power plant, says that costs for decommissioning, compensation for evacuees and decontamination of radioactive materials outside the plant total 21.5 trillion yen ($ 200 billion), although analysts say that it could be a lot. higher.

2.4% DISCOUNT LIMITS

Ten years after the disaster, there are still no-go zones in nine Fukushima municipalities around the destroyed nuclear power plant. The area accounts for 2.4% of the prefecture land, against more than 10% in the original no-go zone. Remediation efforts, such as removing topsoil and tree limbs and flushing out roofs, helped reduce radiation levels. But many residents are reluctant to return due to a lack of jobs and ongoing concerns about radiation.

14 MILLION TONNES OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE

About 14 million tons of radioactive soil, trees and other waste from remediation efforts across Fukushima has been packed in huge quantities of plastic waste bags piled up in temporary storage sites. The bags, enough to fill 11 enclosed baseball stadiums, are now being shipped to a medium-term storage facility being built in the two cities where the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant is located. The government has promised to remove the bags from the prefecture in 30 years, but a definitive warehouse has not yet been established.

432 KILOMETERS (270 MILES) SEASON

Much of Japan’s northeastern coastline hit by the tsunami has been reinforced with massive concrete seawalls up to 15 meters high. All walls have been completed except parts of Fukushima’s east coast. When completed, the total length will be 432 kilometers (270 miles). Critics say the walls look like giant fortresses and block sea views, while posing a potential risk of preventing water from flowing back to sea if breached by a future tsunami.

4,000 NUCLEAR POWER PLANT WORKERS

About 4,000 workers are employed every day at the damaged nuclear power plant to assist in its decommissioning, which officials say will take up to 40 years, a target critics say is overly optimistic. They remove spent fuel rods from cooling basins, reinforce a seawall to protect against future tsunamis, treat radioactive cooling water leaking from the reactors, and remove heavily contaminated debris.

1.24 MILLION TONNES OF RADIOACTIVE WATER

Since the disaster, contaminated cooling water from the damaged reactor containers has leaked into the basements of reactor buildings, where it mixes with groundwater. Much of the water is purified and stored in 1000 huge tanks that now crowd the factory. The operator, TEPCO, says the tanks currently hold 1.24 million tons of water and will be full by the fall of 2022. It says the water and tanks must be removed to make room for facilities needed in the decommissioning process.