7. Fukushima Nuclear Disaster (Japan)
On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck Japan. Exactly 45 minutes after the earthquake, a tsunami hit the entire city of Fukushima, causing the biggest global nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. Japan had to deal with two disasters on the same day. The nuclear power plant, located right next to the sea, lost power due to the tsunami. The diesel generators were badly damaged. After a while, the generators also failed. As a result of the overheating of the reactors, which needed to be actively cooled continuously, the cores began to melt. About 400 first responders were exposed to high doses of radiation. On March 12, evacuations began in the settlements around the plant. As a result of the accident, more than 160 thousand people had to leave their homes. Although there were no fatalities at the time of the accident, radiation leaking from the Fukushima nuclear power plant continues to circulate around the world. In Japan, 44% of children living in the region were found to have thyroid abnormalities during regular health screenings. Nine years after the Fukushima nuclear accident, the radiation emitted from the Fukushima plant continues to increase rather than decrease. The devastation caused by accident was so severe that INES rated the Fukushima disaster as a Level 7 disaster. Japan, which has the largest number of reactors in the world, obtained about 30% of its energy from nuclear power until the Fukushima disaster.
