http://hinanmamaenglish.jimdo.com/letters-from-mothers-evacuating-with-their-children-1/
LETTERS FROM MOTHERS EVACUATING WITH THEIR CHILDREN #1
Vocabulary
I evacuated voluntarily from Koriyama city in Fukushima pref to Sakai city in Osaka pref with my two voluntarily –
children, elementary school students, in order to protect them from radioactivity.
My husband is still in Fukushima, working to support our life. Koriyama city in Fukushima is 50 to 60
kilometers away from the Fukushima NP-plant, so it is out of the evacuation-needed area designated designated by the government.
But it still has air dose of 0.7 micro Sv/h, more than 0.6 micro Sv/h which is the standard of radiation
control area. And there are hot spots with very high radiation level. Therefore, some evacuate
voluntarily, some don’t there.
And I was thinking if I should evacuate from radioactivity or not ever after the mega quake on March
11th and the accident of NP-plant. Since I had no PC, I was just watching TV to gather materials for
judgment. “When evacuation will be announced? In what kind of situation should I do it?”
But the Minister Edano was just saying “It doesn’t influence our health immediately.” without giving
any information that could be a material for judgment.
announced –
immediately –
If the SPEEDI’s information had been disclosed and the scene of the hydrogen explosion had been
showed on TV earlier, I could have evacuated earlier and avoided for children to be radiated at least
for the period. It is very regrettable.
I presumed that Koriyama was not seriously damaged, for it was not designated for evacuationneeded area. I was presuming if it were in a dangerous situation, the government would do
something.
disclosed –
Without knowing anything, I was in the long line to get water and foods for life in water failure due to
the earthquake and food scarcity even at supermarket.
failure –
due to –
scarcity –
occur –
stomatitis –
eczema –
epistaxis –
initial –
health damage –
Abnormal changes began to occur on my oldest son, a pupil. Stomatitis, eczema, fever, epistaxis,
and so on. I didn’t know at that time, but those are the very initial symptoms of health damage that
people around Chernobyl after the NP-plant accident
Those symptoms are occurring on not only my son but also many children living in Fukushima and
broadly Tohoku, Kanto region.
Mothers who have sense of crisis over unusual changes of their children’s health look into internet to
check and make sure of them, and decide to evacuate, although they lose various things in order to
do so.
1/3
presumed –
v1/2013_07
http://hinanmamaenglish.jimdo.com/letters-from-mothers-evacuating-with-their-children-1/
I thought that if my children got deadly illnesses or lose lives 3, 5 or 10 years later because I didn’t
make decision to evacuate, I wouldn’t forgive me, myself. Minister Edano’s words “It doesn’t influence
our health immediately.” means “It does someday.”
I already know that thyroid cancer begins to increase from three years after the accident and reaches thyroid cancer –
its peak at the tenth year according to the data of Chernobyl. TV doesn’t reveal it so much, though.
Even if it doesn’t influence our health immediately, we will be damaged in our health in the near future
after being radiated for a long time. It has already turned out. If my children’s lives that I don’t hesitate hesitate –
to save even by betting my own life are facing the crisis, I have to evacuate. So I came to Osaka that betting –
is 600 kilometers away from Fukushima Daiichi NP-plant.
However, Osaka, that I believed is safe, is going to accept the radiated rubbles. The rubbles Osaka
accepts are from Iwate prefecture. As news shows mentioned that the pine trees from Iwate that was
about to be burned in Kyoto included cesium, Iwate is already radiated. If the pine trees are burned in
Osaka, even Osaka that is miraculously safe about radiation will be also polluted.
rubble –
pine trees –
miraculously –
polluted –
We came to Osaka where we have no acquaintance all the way in order to protect my children. We
acquaintance –
don’t know what to do if even Osaka is polluted. The radiated like us face again the crisis of lives, and
also non-radiated children in Osaka face being radiated. I wouldn’t like people in Osaka to suffer from
the trouble like us.
It was said that NP-plant was safe in Fukushima. But a lot of people were damaged in health and
have to worry about their future. Even in Osaka, accepting rubbles is mentioned as if it is safe. But I
think swallowing it at face value makes Osaka the same as Fukushima.
swallowing –
They say accepting rubbles can be a support for the disaster site. I don’t think so.
The mayor of Rikuzentakada city says “If the rubbles are so safe that they can be disposed in Osaka,
I like to do it in Iwate.” It’s because doing so benefits the industry of the disaster site and bear
employments there.
support –
disposed –
benefits –
bear employments –
I appreciate the will to support the disaster site. But I don’t think accepting rubbles is the only way to
do it. I think it’s much more life-forward way to accept Fukushima’s children who are radiated and
facing the crisis of lives than to accept non-deadly rubbles.
appreciate –
There still many children remain in Fukushima. They are living in air dose more than that in radiation- remain –
control areas and being made eat radiation-polluted foods.
2/3
v1/2013_07
http://hinanmamaenglish.jimdo.com/letters-from-mothers-evacuating-with-their-children-1/
Only three students in a class of the school in Koriyama where we used to live, which means only 10
% of all the students has evacuated and 90 % of children remains.
requested education committee –
In Koriyama’s school lunch, rice raised in the field covered with high radiation last year and milk in
which 18 Bq of cesium was found are being used. Parents requested the education committee or the
school to improve such a school lunch only to be turned down due to the business relationship so
far. They filed a lawsuit requesting that children in Koriyama can have the right to make a group
evacuation, but it was rejected. They are now under appeal.
filed –
lawsuit rejected appeal –
I advised one of my friend not to let her child drink the milk of school lunch at least and to let him/her
take the rice that has grown at safe place. However, she said she couldn’t do such a thing different
from everyone. I think it is one of “village mentality.” They are not able to make even a defense like
that.
village mentality –
defense –
Data of Chernobyl tells us that radiated children can avoid serious diseases by evacuating to
somewhere safe, breathing safe air and eating safe foods even for a short time.
Don’t hesitate to let out your voice of objection to accepting rubbles, please. Turn your eyes to
accepting evacuees rather than rubbles, please.
Even now, compensation for evacuation from outside the area within 20 kilometers from NP-plant
isn’t done. It can be economic burden and prevents evacuation to save lives.
objection –
burden –
To object accepting rubbles and to keep Osaka safe to evacuate makes a support in order to save
lives of people being radiated in Fukushima and so on.
I really wouldn’t like Osaka to accept rubbles in order not to be polluted, not to repeat Fukushima’s
tragedy.
3/3
v1/2013_07