«  
  »

PHOTOS: Children swim at Fukushima beach as ocean opened for first time since 3/11

Published: July 17th, 2012 at 8:16 am ET
By
Email Article Email Article
31 comments


Title: Fukushima opens first beach since nuke crisis
Source: AP
Date: July 17, 2012

SOURCE: AP

Fukushima prefecture has opened its first beach to swimmers since last year’s nuclear disaster after judging the water to be safe.

About 1,000 people on Monday descended on Nakoso beach, about 65 kilometers  south of the Fukushima Dai-ichi

[...]

SOURCE: AFP

The opening was celebrated with beach volleyball games and hula dancers from a nearby spa.

Iwaki city official Joji Kimura says negligible radiation was detected in water at the beach. Airborne radiation was measured at 0.08 microsieverts per hour, far below dangerous levels.

[...]

Published: July 17th, 2012 at 8:16 am ET
By
Email Article Email Article
31 comments

Related Posts

  1. Japanese musicians film as children play barefoot in elevated radiation levels -Gawker (PHOTOS & VIDEOS) April 30, 2012
  2. Just 0.8% of children in 2001 Japanese control group had thyroid cysts or nodules — 36% in Fukushima study July 15, 2012
  3. Report: 12 million yen “to censor Twitter” being spent by city starting to burn disaster debris September 18, 2012
  4. Now 35.8% of Fukushima children have thyroid cysts or nodules — 13,646 do and 24,468 don’t July 15, 2012
  5. Scientists: First time radioactive silver detected in ocean — Radioactivity levels in seawater are not diminishing as hoped — “Reactor site still seems to be leaking; it hasn’t shut off” February 23, 2012
July 17th, 2012 | Category: Children, Japan (Fukushima)
«  
  »

31 comments to PHOTOS: Children swim at Fukushima beach as ocean opened for first time since 3/11

  • arclight arclight
    July 17, 2012 at 6:21 am

    anyone get any sea sediment samples…

    some food for thought here

    "..Record number of radioactive particles found on beaches near Sellafield
    Seven beaches contained 383 particles found in 2020-11, while Sellafield insists health risks are 'very low'…"

    "…But the HPA has also pointed to a series of "uncertainties" in the beach monitoring that could lead to its risk assessment being reviewed. The latest equipment might miss tiny specks that could be inhaled, it said, as well as buried alpha radioactivity that "could give rise to a significant risk to health if ingested".

    A local environmental group expressed concern that in some areas, particles seemed to reappear after they had been cleaned up. "This warrants closure of the beaches or at least the erection of warning signs for parents and others of the health dangers posed," said Janine Allis-Smith, from Cumbrians Opposed to a Radioactive Environment.

    Documents released under freedom of information law show that in 2010 the Environment Agency agreed that monitoring for contamination on the beaches should avoid peak periods such as during bank holidays. This followed a complaint from St Bees parish council expressing "strong concern that this would have an adverse impact on tourism.".."

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/jul/04/radioactive-particles-beaches-sellafield

    alpha particles dont show up on giegers unless you are right on them..


    Report Comment

  • The German
    July 17, 2012 at 6:26 am

    Ha ha ha i dont know should i laugh or should i cry?WTF ??!


    Report Comment

  • arclight arclight
    July 17, 2012 at 6:33 am

    interesting if you google Joji Kimura .. you get lots of main stream links covering this story.. from 6 and 5 hours ago to be exact (more or less..)

    more nuke PR?? great pictures… wonder who turned up?? did any japanese enenewsers go there? how was it advertised? who does the monitoring and what are they monitoring for?

    i hope this isnt a chernobyl mayday moment.. :(


    Report Comment

  • VicFromOregon VicFromOregon
    July 17, 2012 at 6:38 am

    I don't even know what to say to this….

    arclight, this is definitely PR coupled with a profound need and desire by all in Japan for this crisis to be over and life to return to normal.


    Report Comment

  • VicFromOregon VicFromOregon
    July 17, 2012 at 6:59 am

    How can scientists and doctors and politicians even think of letting children take such a risk knowing the risk, even if they believe it small, is still very real? Because the need for normalcy. They fear the collapse of their economic and social and political systems more than they fear the loss of hundreds of thousands of their own children. Japan has been through this before. They have absorbed thousands of irradiated citizens into their daily life before with little mention, often shunning, frequently ignoring. They have teetered on the edge of collapse before in the aftermath of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They are the only people who were deliberately bombed with nuclear weapons. They still labor under that trauma. The apparatus is still there somewhere in the culture, the halls of power, the social system, to go on as though the event never occurred. For many Japanese, as for many people around the world, it is the only imaginable path to rebuilding. Perhaps our path to end nuclear power will be to help Japan deal with both the past and the present in a different, gentler, more acknowledged way, to let them know that this time they are not alone, that we are beside them. It doesn't matter any longer who and how this started, but how we end it together.


    Report Comment

  • many moons
    July 17, 2012 at 9:54 am

    If the beaches were closed why were they closed?
    What has changed so that beaches can be re-opened?
    Simple questions….who has the answers?

    I wonder how many local officials or "scientists" took their children to the Fukushima beach???
    DISGUSTING!


    Report Comment

  • Eric
    July 17, 2012 at 10:23 am

    "They are the only people who were deliberately bombed with nuclear weapons."Vic.
    I thought this for a long time, however the sad truth is that this belief, that only two cities in Japan were bombed with nukes is no longer accurate. DU was/is used continuously and deliberately. At this point, an explosion with radiation doesn't appear any more devastating than what we've got, which came about because of deliberate choices to prioritize some things above safety.


    Report Comment

  • FRCSR FRCSR
    July 17, 2012 at 12:15 pm

    A former Fukushima resident went to Nakoso Beach in the early morning of July 17, the day of the beach opening, to take radiation measurements. He is also personally having the beach sand analyzed for radioisotope types.

    Beautiful Nasoko Beach.
    https://twitter.com/namiekuwabara/status/225081058264223745/photo/1

    Steps going from road down to the beach: γ＋β＝1.012μSv/h maximum.
    https://twitter.com/namiekuwabara/status/225083616739340289/photo/1

    Lower steps: γ＝0.16μSv/h. γ+β＝0.688μSv/h. https://twitter.com/namiekuwabara/status/225085060628496388/photo/1

    Aerial radiation level at the beach: 0.137μSv/h.
    Beach sand surface: γ＝0.13μSv/h. γ＋β＝0.215μSv/h.
    https://twitter.com/namiekuwabara/status/225082270980112385/photo/1

    Beach sand, shallowly dug out: γ＋β＝0.149μSv/h. https://twitter.com/namiekuwabara/status/225082869515681794/photo/1


    Report Comment

    • arclight arclight
      July 17, 2012 at 2:39 pm

      1 microsievert… someone should get sued over this… and thats only gamma and maybe beta??

      and how do they know that the seawater is only 1 bq/l ??


      Report Comment

    • aigeezer aigeezer
      July 17, 2012 at 2:52 pm

      Excellent, FRCSR. Can you provide any more details about the event? Was it spontaneous? Who were the people present and why did they show up? What kind of publicity preceded the event? How did the media know to show up for the photo op? How long did people stay? Did anyone actually swim?… that kind of thing.

      I'm trying hard to keep my questions neutral. ;-)

      Thanks!


      Report Comment

      • FRCSR FRCSR
        July 17, 2012 at 4:22 pm

        I believe this was a well-publicized event, promoted by local authorities, marking the beginning of the summer swimming season. Authorities are only thinking about how to present "normal Japan" and "normal Fukushima," and the media just go along with it mostly. I am sure everybody there had a great swim, having fun in the water and on the beach, etc.

        There have been and will be numerous sports events in Fukushima, marathon, cycling events, etc., etc. Many in Japan actually believe the radiation contamination there is not too bad, thanks to the government-issued "radiation booklet." This post explains a little about it.

        http://fukushimavoice-eng.blogspot.com/2012/05/japanese-governments-brainwashing.html

        Here's some more about pure insanity.

        http://fukushimavoice-eng.blogspot.com/2012/05/insanity-in-fukushima-keeps-getting.html


        Report Comment

        • aigeezer aigeezer
          July 17, 2012 at 4:45 pm

          Wow! Amazing stuff, FRCSR.

          "Cause 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Relative risk for cancer
          Radiation exposure to 1,000 to 2,000 mSv 1.8 times
          Smoking and drinking 　　　　　　　　1.6 times
          Emancipation 　　　　　　　　　　　 1.29 times
          Obesity 1.22 times
          Radiation exposure to 200 to 500 mSv 1.19 times
          Lack of physical exercise 1.15 to 1.19 times
          High salt intake 1.11 to 1.15 times
          Radiation exposure to 100 to 200 mSv 1.08 times
          Lack of vegetable consumption 1.06 times"

          That is astonishing propaganda. What the heck is "emancipation" as a cause of cancer, I wonder?


          Report Comment

          • jec
            July 17, 2012 at 5:03 pm

            So take the numbers for what we all do..and ADD the % of the increase due to radiation…plus think of this..LACK of vegetable consumption, or lack of exercise–also can be caused by radiation! No safe vegetables to eat..and can not go outside due to radiation. The smoking and drinking — that's caused by the stress of radiation. We could continue..BUT….Just saying..


            Report Comment

          • FRCSR FRCSR
            July 17, 2012 at 5:34 pm

            Well, the whole country is just pure propaganda nowadays. I can't even begin to tell you everything.

            Sadly, educators in Fukushima actually believe the content of the radiation booklet, and they worry about emotionally traumatizing children by acknowledging their radiation exposure. They want to know if 1μSv/h is really too high.

            Fukushima children now are having summer swim classes in outdoor swimming pools. (It is mandatory for students to have swim lessons during PE classes in elementary schools and junior high schools in Japan. Japanese high schools are not part of mandatory education, so individual high schools have leeway in deciding on swim classes, but elementary and junior high schools are obligated to follow the guidelines established by Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, which incidentally is the ministry that is responsible for radiation measurement. Don't ask me why. Nuclear power plants are managed by the Ministry of Economy, Trade,and Industry.


            Report Comment

          • Wreedles Wreedles
            July 26, 2012 at 4:17 pm

            Emaciation probably got auto-corrected…


            Report Comment

    • dharmasyd
      July 17, 2012 at 5:26 pm

      FRCSR…Wow, those numbers from your Fuku friend sure contradict the official PR line.


      Report Comment

  • getoutwhileyoustillcan
    July 17, 2012 at 1:23 pm

    My jaw just dropped when I saw this.


    Report Comment

  • eatliesndie eatliesndie
    July 17, 2012 at 6:08 pm

    I am astounded by the pure evil involved in the propaganda. Using the children, SHAME!


    Report Comment

  • realself
    July 19, 2012 at 11:09 am

    Angry about this? Go to https://www.city.iwaki.fukushima.jp/cgi-bin/contact.cgi?mail=1320 and fill in the form. Form fields, translated: (nothing will translate this https web page, sorry). 1. do you want a reply from the city? A. yes B. no 2. Subject 3. Body of letter 4. email address 5. confirm email address 6. name 7. furigana (just put: n/a) 8. address 9. telephone. At the bottom are two buttons, click the left. Then page reloads for confirmation. Click the bottom left again.

    Also you can email the Municipal Gov't. of Fukushima Prefecture, here: kouho@pref.fukushima.jp

    Good luck


    Report Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.

«  
  »