Radiation slows recovery of dead near Japan plant

FUKUSHIMA, Japan, Mar 31 (AP): In the sh | Published: April 01, 2011 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

FUKUSHIMA, Japan, Mar 31 (AP): In the sh
Authorities are increasingly turning to international help in stabilizing the plant and stemming the tide of radiation, while simultaneously dealing with the other disaster wrought by a March 11 tsunami: the decimation of hundreds of miles (kilometres) of northeastern coastline, the displacement of tens of thousands and the deaths of an estimated 19,000 people. "We find bodies everywhere - in cars, in rivers, under debris and in streets," a police official from the hard-hit Fukushima prefecture said Thursday. He spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. Efforts to recover the bodies from the 12-mile (20-kilometre) evacuation zone around the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant have been slowed by the scale of destruction and a wasteland of debris, but also by fears of radiation. Police in that prefecture dressed in full radiation suits grabbed 19 corpses from the rubble on Wednesday, the police official said. Authorities declined to say how many bodies might still be buried in the evacuation zone, but local media have estimated hundreds remain. Each officer wears a radiation detector and must leave the area whenever its alarm goes off - a frequent occurrence that has often dragged the operation to a halt, the official said. There are also concerns about the disposal of bodies since Japanese tend to cremate their dead, and fires can spread radiation. The Health Ministry recommends that the bodies should all be cleaned and those with even small levels of radiation should be handled only by people wearing suits, gloves and masks. Radiation concerns have also complicated efforts to bring the plant itself under control. Contaminated water pooling inside the complex has begun to leak into the ground and ocean and has restricted where crews can work, and puts them in the uncomfortable position of having to pump in more water to continue cooling the reactors while simultaneously pumping out contaminated water. Japanese officials have struggled to stabilize the plant and are increasingly seeking help to stem and identify leaks. French, American and IAEA experts and robots are all in Japan or on their way.