Rebuilding Japan

For Kids In Japan, Adjusting To A Changed World()  

Students at Tohoku Chosen, an elementary and junior high school for North Koreans in Sendai City, now take dance classes in the school's cafeteria because their main building was destroyed when the earthquake struck northeast Japan last March.

March 9, 2012 A year after the earthquake and tsunami that killed almost 20,000 people in northeast Japan, schoolchildren are moving on, but have not forgotten. The students and their teachers talk about the effect the quake and its aftermath has had on them.

Transcript

On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

The Picture Show

One Year Later: Japan's Wreckage And Recovery()  

Yuko Sugimoto (right) stands reunited with her 5-year-old son, Raito, on a road in Japan's Miyagi prefecture, 2012. This photo was taken at the same place where she was photographed immediately after the tsunami in March 2011.

March 9, 2012 Interactive photos show continuity and change in Japan since the tsunami struck one year ago.

Summary

A Year On, Japan Is Still Looking For The Road Ahead()  

Members of the media, wearing protective suits and masks, visit the tsunami-crippled Fukushima nuclear power station during a press tour, in northeastern Japan's Fukushima prefecture, Feb. 28. Japan is marking the first anniversary of the March 11 tsunami and earthquake, which triggered the worst nuclear accident in the country's history.

March 9, 2012 A new independent report on the Fukushima nuclear accident found that a far worse meltdown — one that could have forced the evacuation of Tokyo's 30 million people — was narrowly avoided. It also suggests that Japan also suffered a failure of government regulation, supervision and response.

Transcript

On Morning EditionPlaylist

Trauma, Not Radiation, Is Key Concern In Japan()  

A worker is given a radiation screening as he enters the emergency operation center at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant on Feb. 20.

March 9, 2012 Experts say health effects from the radiation released by last year's nuclear disaster will be minimal. But the lasting psychological trauma from the tsunami, including the loss of life and livelihoods, will be an ongoing struggle.

Transcript

On Morning EditionPlaylist

With Radiation, Doubt Grows In Fukushima Farms()  

A woman picks carrots on her farm as she explains her fears that no one will buy them since the radiation fallout in March 2011 in Fukushima, Japan. A year later, challenges persist for farmers in the region.

March 8, 2012 Radiation still leaks from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in northeast Japan after last year's meltdowns. The continuing threats from the disaster go beyond contamination: For farmers, uncertainty can also be toxic.

Transcript

On Morning EditionPlaylist

One Year Later, 'Inside Japan's Nuclear Meltdown'()  

After the earthquake, workers were sent inside Reactor 1 at the Fukushima plant to release some of the pressure building up inside the reactors.

February 28, 2012 A small group of engineers, soldiers and firemen risked their own lives to help prevent a complete meltdown after the quake and tsunami hit. Investigative reporter Dan Edge chronicles the aftermath of the disaster in a new Frontline documentary.

Transcript

On Fresh Air from WHYYPlaylist

The Two-Way

Japanese Officials Declare 'Cold Shutdown' Of Crippled Reactors()  

Workers in protective suits and masks wait to enter the emergency operation center at the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power station on Nov. 12, 2011.

December 16, 2011 If correct, it's an important milestone in the long effort toward recovery from the nuclear disaster triggered by a March 11 earthquake and tsunami. But skeptics fear the government's claim is premature.

Summary

Areas Of Northern Japan May Be Off-Limits For Years()  

A 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck Japan offshore on March 11, setting into motion a tsunami that engulfed large parts  of northeastern Japan and triggered a nuclear meltdown at a power plant in Fukushima. On March 26, a man walks among debris in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, Japan.

September 13, 2011 Six months after the accident at the Fukushima nuclear plant, the Japanese government has declared eight areas near the reactors as potential no-go zones for the next two decades. Many residents remain homeless. Beyond the hot zone, many people have decided to stay, but are worried about elevated radiation levels.

Transcript

On Morning EditionPlaylist

Japanese Seniors: Send Us To Damaged Nuclear Plant()  

Workers decontaminate the roof of a kindergarten about 12 miles from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan last month. Several hundred Japanese seniors have volunteered to take part in the cleanup effort.

September 12, 2011 Since Japan's nuclear accident in March, about 500 Japanese seniors have signed up to work at the dangerous plant. They say it's better that they risk their lives than the younger workers at a job that has been called courageous — and suicidal.

Transcript

On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

After Nuclear Mishap, Japan Debates Energy Future()  

Farmers whose crops were ruined by a nuclear accident protest Aug. 3 at the Tokyo Electric Power Co. Many Japanese are calling for the country to lessen its dependence on nuclear power following the accident six months ago.

September 6, 2011 The Japanese public is demanding that the country move away from nuclear power and toward renewable sources of energy. But it's a tall task for a country with few resources.

Transcript

On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

more Rebuilding Japan >

Podcast + RSS Feeds

Podcast RSS

  • World
     
  • Rebuilding Japan
     
 
 

NPR thanks our sponsors

Become an NPR Sponsor

This chart from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows how the tsunami is expected to travel across the Pacific Ocean. The dark black and purple indicate the highest rise in sea level. The light gray lines indicate when the tsunami wave is expected to arrive. View high-res version.
NOAA

This chart from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows how the tsunami is expected to travel across the Pacific Ocean. The dark black and purple indicate the highest rise in sea level. The light gray lines indicate when the tsunami wave is expected to arrive. View high-res version.