TOKYO, April 14th: Japan's widely respected emperor made his first visit Thursday to the disaster zone devastated by an earthquake and tsunami, kneeling on mats to commiserate with survivors who bowed in gratitude and wiped away tears.Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visited two evacuation shelters Thursday in Asahi city, where they spoke quietly with evacuees sitting on mats in the community centers that have become their temporary homes.
Asahi, about 86 kilometers (54 miles) east of Tokyo near the Pacific coast, is one of the southernmost areas to be heavily affected by the March 11 natural disasters, which killed up to 26,000 people and also set off a crisis of radiation leaks at a flooded nuclear plant.
Even as the month-old emergency dragged on, radiation levels dropped enough for police sealed in white protective suits, goggles and blue gloves to begin searching for bodies amid the muddy debris inside a six-mile (10-kilometer) radius around the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant that had been off-limits. The setbacks are angering and frustating residents whose lives have derailed by the crisis.
Thirteen people died, and some 3,000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the city. The emperor and empress plan additional visits to other tsunami-affected areas in coming weeks. Overall, more than 26,000 people are believed to have died in the disaster, though only about 11,250 bodies have been recovered so far.
Nearly 140,000 people are still living in shelters after losing their homes or being advised to evacuate because of concerns about radiation leaking from the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant.
Although Japanese officials have insisted the situation at the crippled plant is improving, the crisis has dragged on, accompanied by a nearly nonstop series of mishaps and aftershocks of the 9.0-magnitude quake that have impeded work in clearing debris and restoring the plant's disabled cooling systems.
Nearly 140,000 people are still living in shelters after losing their homes or being advised to evacuate because of concerns about radiation leaking from the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant.
Although Japanese officials have insisted the situation at the crippled plant is improving, the crisis has dragged on, accompanied by a nearly nonstop series of mishaps and aftershocks of the 9.0-magnitude quake that have impeded work in clearing debris and restoring the plant's disabled cooling systems.
Akihito, 77, has been active in trying to console the nation since the disasters struck last month. He made an unprecedented made-for-TV address expressing his condolences and has visited evacuees relocated to Tokyo. He is expected to visit other tsunami-affected areas of Japan's northeast coast in coming weeks.
Meanwhile, the nuclear impasse is compounding the political difficulties of Prime Minister Naoto Kan. In recent days, opposition politicians — who refrained from heavy criticism in the initial weeks after the disaster — have resumed calls for his resignation, and some critics have called for independent inquiries into the handling of the crisis.On Thursday, an expert panel appointed by the government began discussing reconstruction plans and compiling recommendations.
"We may not be able to provide technical advice on how to resolve the nuclear accident. But what's important is that the discussion involves the entire nation," said Defense Academy chief Makoto Iokibe, who heads the 15-member panel and urged a careful revision of safety standards.
Yoshihisa Kato, a 66-year-old noodle shop owner, said he had been going to funerals nearly every day for elderly neighbors who died from the stress and exhaustion.
"I am physically and mentally worn out by the nuclear crisis," said Kato, whose shop is in Kawamata, a town about 30 miles (45 kilometers) northwest of the plant. He called the government and the nuclear plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., or TEPCO, liars for promising support and money for those affected.
"I've been going to funerals almost everyday because many elderly people in my neighborhood have died due to shocks and exhaustion," said Kato, whose business has dried up as residents have fled the area.
Japan acknowledged this week that overall leaked radioactivity already has catapulted the crisis into the highest severity on an international scale, on a par with Chernobyl, though still involving only a tenth of the radioactivity emitted in that 1986 disaster.
"We may not be able to provide technical advice on how to resolve the nuclear accident. But what's important is that the discussion involves the entire nation," said Defense Academy chief Makoto Iokibe, who heads the 15-member panel and urged a careful revision of safety standards.
Yoshihisa Kato, a 66-year-old noodle shop owner, said he had been going to funerals nearly every day for elderly neighbors who died from the stress and exhaustion.
"I am physically and mentally worn out by the nuclear crisis," said Kato, whose shop is in Kawamata, a town about 30 miles (45 kilometers) northwest of the plant. He called the government and the nuclear plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., or TEPCO, liars for promising support and money for those affected.
"I've been going to funerals almost everyday because many elderly people in my neighborhood have died due to shocks and exhaustion," said Kato, whose business has dried up as residents have fled the area.
Japan acknowledged this week that overall leaked radioactivity already has catapulted the crisis into the highest severity on an international scale, on a par with Chernobyl, though still involving only a tenth of the radioactivity emitted in that 1986 disaster.
Nuclear officials on Thursday detailed a glitch in the cooling of spent fuel at one of the plant's reactor buildings, in a reminder of the varied challenges in stabilizing the troubled plant.
Imperial empathy: Japanese Emperor Akihito, left, and Empress Michiko, kneel down and smile at people at an evacuation shelter in Asahi City in Chiba Prefecture, about 86 kilometers (54 miles) east of Tokyo, Thursday, during their first trip to the disaster zone since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The imperial couple visited two evacuation shelters in the city near the Pacific coast. (AP/Kyodo News)Water inadvertently sprayed into an overflow tank prompted a false reading that the main pool was full when it wasn't. That prompted workers to suspend the injection of water into the main pool for several days until Wednesday, when spraying resumed. Strong aftershocks might also have affected the readings, officials said.
The suspension of sprayin
g allowed temperatures and radiation levels at the building to rise, though the rods were still believed to have been covered with water, said Hidehiko Nishiyama of Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
"I believe fuel rods in the pool are largely intact, or still keeping the normal shape of what they should look like," Nishiyama said Thursday. "If they were totally messed up, we would have been looking at different sets of numbers from the water sampling."
Until cooling systems can be fully restored, flooding the reactors with water is the only way to help prevent them from overheating, but those many tons of water, tainted with radioactivity, pose a separate threat.
The suspension of sprayin
g allowed temperatures and radiation levels at the building to rise, though the rods were still believed to have been covered with water, said Hidehiko Nishiyama of Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.
"I believe fuel rods in the pool are largely intact, or still keeping the normal shape of what they should look like," Nishiyama said Thursday. "If they were totally messed up, we would have been looking at different sets of numbers from the water sampling."
Until cooling systems can be fully restored, flooding the reactors with water is the only way to help prevent them from overheating, but those many tons of water, tainted with radioactivity, pose a separate threat.
Mari Yamaguchi and Shino Yuasa, Associated Press, Tokyo | Thu, 04/14/2011 8:09 PM | World
credits: The Jakarta Post
天皇陛下から被災者へのビデオメッセージ
Video message from the Emperor
16日の16：30ごろ、各テレビ局は天皇陛下からのビデオメッセージを一斉に放送した。天皇陛下からのメッセージは、以下の通りとなっている。
Around 16:30 on the 16th March, each television station broadcasts a video message from the Emperor all at once. Message from the Emperor, which were as follows:
「この度の太平洋沖地震は、マグニチュード9.0。例を見ないほどの巨大地震であり被災地の悲惨な状況に深く心を痛めています。
"This time, the Pacific Ocean earthquake, magnitude 9.0. deeply hurt the disaster area in a direct situation as unprecedented.地震や津波による死者の数は、日を追って増加し、犠牲者が何人になるのかも分かりません。
The number of deaths from the earthquakes and tsunamis has increased day by day.
また、現在、原子力発電所の状況が、関係者による尽力に事態のさらなる悪化が回避されることを切に願っています。
The present status of nuclear power plants, I sincerely hope that the efforts to avoid further deterioration of the situation by participants.現在、国をあげての救援活動が進められていますが、厳しい寒さの中で、多くの人々が食料、飲料水、燃料などの不足により、極めて苦しい避難生活を余儀なくされています。Currently, relief efforts are underway to give the country, in the bitter cold, many people have food, drinking water and shortages of fuel, they are forced to live on an extremely painful evacuation.自衛隊、警察、消防、海上保安庁をはじめとする、国や地方自治体の人々。諸外国からの救援のために来日した人々。国内のさまざまな救援組織に属する人々が、余震の続く危険な状況の中で、日夜、救援活動を進めている努力に感謝し、その労を深くねぎらいたく思います。
Self-Defense Forces, Police, Fire Company, Coast Guard and other people of central and local governments. Those who came for relief from foreign countries. People belonging to various relief organizations in Japan are in a dangerous situation of aftershocks followed,day and night, thanks to the effort to promote relief, that no effort would be a waste.今回、世界各国の元首から相次いでお見舞いの電報が届き、その多くに、各国国民の気持ちが、被災者と共にあるとの言葉が添えられていました。これを、被災地の人々にお伝えします。
This time, I have received telegrams of sympathy from the heads of state from around the world one after another, many of them, the feelings of people around, and was accompanied by wordsthat are with the victims. This will tell the people of the affected areas.海外においては、この、深い悲しみの中で、日本人が取り乱すことなく助け合い、秩序ある対応を示していることに触れた論調も多いと聞いています。
Overseas, this in deep sorrow, without helping the Japanese get upset, I heard manycomments that showed a touch orderly.これからも、皆が相携え、いたわりあって、この、不幸な時期を乗り越えることを、衷心より願っています。被災者の、これからの苦難の日々を、わたくしたち皆が様々な形で少しでも多くわかちあっていくことが大切であろうと思います。
From now on, to Itawari, this time to overcome the unfortunatethan the innermost feelings I hope. Victims, their days of suffering in the future, I will bethere will be important as many Wakachi everyone in various ways we designed.被災した人々が、決して希望を捨てることなく、体を大切に、明日からの日々を生き抜いてくれるよう、また、国民一人一人が被災した各地域の上に、これからも長く心を寄せ、被災者と共に、それぞれの地域の復興の道のりを見守り続けていくことを、心より願っています。」People were affected, abandoning hope, someone to live through every day from tomorrow, also on the regional were affected each one of the public in love long from now, the victims Together, the way we continue to watch over the reconstruction of each region, we sincerely hope. "
credits: rocketnews 24
参照元：USTREAM NHK-TV
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