Must Read: Asahi Shinbun "Trap of Prometheus" Series Part 1 - Men in Protective Clothing (4,5) "This Is a Homicide"

(Installment 1, Installments 2 and 3, Installments 4 and 5, Installment 6, Installments 7 and 8, Installments 9 and 10, Installments 11 and 12)

Asahi Shinbun's series "Trap of Prometheus" - Men in Protective Clothing, which documents what happened in Namie-machi in Fukushima Prefecture right after the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident.

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防護服の男：４　殺人罪じゃないか

Men in Protective Clothing (4) This is a homicide, isn't it?

　ＳＰＥＥＤＩ（スピーディ）というコンピューター・シミュレーションがある。政府が１３０億円を投じてつくっているシステムだ。放射線量、地形、天候、風向きなどを入力すると、漏れた放射性物質がどこに流れるかをたちまち割り出す。

There is a computer simulation system called SPEEDI, which the national government has spent 13 billion yen to develop. If you input the amount of radiation, topography, weather, wind direction, etc., the system will calculate where the leaked radioactive materials may go.

　３月１２日、１号機で水素爆発が起こる２時間前、文部科学省所管の原子力安全技術センターがそのシミュレーションを実施した。

On March 12, two hours before Reactor 1 had a hydrogen explosion, the SPEEDI simulation was carried out by Nuclear Safety Technology Center under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education and Science.

　放射性物質は津島地区の方向に飛散していた。しかし政府はそれを住民に告げなかった。

The simulation showed radioactive materials flowing toward Tsushima District [in Namie-machi]. But the national government didn't tell the residents.

　ＳＰＥＥＤＩの結果は福島県も知っていた。１２日夜には、東京の原子力安全技術センターに電話して提供を求め、電子メールで受け取っていた。しかしそれが活用されることはなく、メールはいつの間にか削除され、受け取った記録さえもうやむやになった。

The result of the SPEEDI simulation was known to the Fukushima prefectural government. The Fukushima government even called up Nuclear Safety Technology Center on March 12 night to ask for the simulation result, which was then sent via email. However, the prefectural government never acted on it. The email has been deleted since, and the record of the receipt of the email is lost.

　３月１５日に津島地区から避難した住民に、県からＳＰＥＥＤＩの結果が伝えられたのは、２カ月後の５月２０日だった。県議会でこの事実が問題となったためだ。

Residents evacuated from Tsushima District on March 15, but it was not until May 20 that they were informed of the SPEEDI result by the Fukushima prefectural government, because the subject was brought up in the Prefectural Assembly.

　福島県の担当課長は５月２０日、浪江町が役場機能を移していた二本松市の東和支所を釈明に訪れた。

A manager in charge at the prefectural government visited the temporary town hall of Namie-machi in Nihonmatsu City on May 20 to explain.

　「これは殺人罪じゃないか」

"It is a homicide, isn't it?"

　町長の馬場有は強く抗議した。

Namie-machi Mayor Baba strongly protested.

　馬場によると、県の担当課長は涙を流しながら「すみませんでした」といい、ＳＰＥＥＤＩの結果を伝えなかったことを謝ったという。

According to Baba, the manager in charge apologized in tears for not having passed on the SPEEDI result.

　知らされなかったのはＳＰＥＥＤＩの情報だけではない。

It was not just the SPEEDI information that had been withheld.

　福島県は、事故翌日の３月１２日早朝から、各地域の放射線量を計測している。

Fukushima Prefecture had measured the radiation levels in various locations since early morning of March 12.

　同日午前９時、浪江町酒井地区で毎時１５マイクロシーベルト、高瀬地区では１４マイクロシーベルト。浪江町の２地点はほかの町と比べて異常に高い数値を示した。１号機水素爆発の６時間以上も前で、近くには大勢の避難民がいた。

At 9AM on March 12, it was 15 microsieverts/hr in Sakai District, and 14 microsieverts/hr in Takase District. These two locations in Namie-machi showed abnormally high radiation levels compared to other towns. It was more than 6 hours before the hydrogen explosion of Reactor 1, and there were many evacuees in these districts.

　これらの数値は６月３日に経済産業省のＨＰに掲載された。しかし、ＨＰにびっしり並ぶ情報の数字の中に埋もれ、その重大さは見逃された。

These numbers were uploaded on the homepage of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on June 3. However, the significance of these numbers were lost among the copious data on the METI's homepage.

　８月末、浪江町の災害救援本部長、植田和夫にそれらの資料を見せると、植田は仰天した。

At the end of August, [I] showed the data to Kazuo Ueda, who is in charge of disaster assistance. He was flabbergasted.

　「こんなの初めて見た。なぜ国や県は教えてくれなかったのだろう」

"I've never seen these before. Why didn't the national government and the prefectural government tell us?"

　菅野みずえはいう。

Mizue Sugano [from installments 1, 2, 3] says,

　「私たちは、国から見捨てられたということでしょうか」

"I suppose we were abandoned by the government."

　（前田基行）

(Reported by Motoyuki Maeda)
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防護服の男（５） 私、死んじゃうの？

Men in Protective Clothing (5) Will I die?


菅野みずえの家にいた２５人の人々は、その後どこに向かったのだろう。

Where did the 25 people in Mizue Sugano's house go?

　その一人、谷田（やつだ）みさ子（６２）はいま、愛知県春日井市の市営住宅で避難生活を送る。

One of them, Misako Yatsuda (age 62) have evacuated to Kasugai City in Aichi Prefecture. She lives in a municipal housing.

　みずえの遠い親戚だ。同じ浪江町の小野田地区に家がある。みずえの家からは約２０キロ海寄りで、福島第一原発から１０キロ以内の距離にある。

She is a distant relative of Mizue. Her house is in Onoda District of Namie-machi. It is located about 20 kilometers east of Mizue's house, and within the 10 kilometer radius from Fukushima I Nuke Plant.

　３月１１日午後、自宅で地震に襲われた。

In the afternoon of March 11 when the earthquake hit, she was at home.

　翌１２日早朝、隣の双葉町に住む次女一家が「ここは危ないから逃げるのよ」と駆け込んできた。朝９時、家を出た。

Early next morning, on March 12, her second daughter who lived in neighboring Futaba-machi came with her family to get her. "It's dangerous here, we have to get out." They left on 9AM.

　みずえの家がある津島方向に向かう国道１１４号はすでに大渋滞。国道６号に出て北に進み、南相馬市小高区の長女宅に向かう。ここで１号機の水素爆発を知り、さらに全員で津島を目指した。

Route 114 was clogged up with cars going in the direction of Tsushima District where Mizue lived. They took Route 6 and headed north, and went to the house of Misako's eldest daughter in Kodaka District in Minami Soma City. There, they heard of the hydrogen explosion of Reactor 1, and all headed for Tsushima District.

　みずえの家に着いたのは夕方６時を回っていた。他の避難者が炊き出しの握り飯を食べ終わったところだった。

When they arrived at Mizue's house, it was past 6PM. Other evacuees there had just finished eating supper.

　一日中走り回って疲れていたが、避難者の会議には出席した。共同生活ルールのうち、使用済みトイレットペーパーを段ボール箱に捨てるよう提案したのは、みさ子だった。以前メキシコ旅行をしたときの経験を思い出したからだ。

They were tired from running around all day, but they joined the meeting of the evacuees. It was Misako who suggested that they throw used toilet paper in the box, from her experience when she traveled in Mexico.

　しかし、ほっとしたのもつかの間、白い防護服の男たちの警告をみずえから聞かされた。

They were barely settled down when Mizue told them of the warning from the men in white protective clothing.

　生後１カ月の赤ちゃんを抱えた次女一家７人と、長女一家４人を、夜中に逃がした。翌１３日夕、みさ子も発った。

Misako had the family of 7 of her second daughter with a 1-month-old baby, and the family of 4 of her eldest daughter evacuate during the night. Misako herself evacuated on March 13 evening.

　行くあてはなかったが、「少しでも遠くに」と郡山市を目指す。

She didn't know where to go, but she headed for Koriyama City to get as far away as possible.

　郡山市では、避難して来る人たちの放射能測定をしていた。みさ子に測定器が向けられると、針が大きく振れた。「私、死んじゃうの？」と測定係に叫んだ。

In Koriyama City, they were measuring the radiation on the evacuees. When they tested Misako, the needle of the meter swung significantly. " Am I going to die?" Misako shouted.

　その晩は車で寝た。１５日朝、地震当時は相馬市にいた夫（５４）と携帯電話でようやく連絡が取れた。会津若松市で合流し、新潟県経由で、２２日、姉が暮らす春日井市に逃れた。

That night, she slept in the car. On March 15 morning, she was finally able to talk over the cellphone with her husband (age 54) who was in Soma City when the earthquake struck. They met in Aizu Wakamatsu City, and went, via Niigata Prefecture, to Kasugai City [in Aichi Prefecture] on March 22 where her sister lived.

　国や東京電力から的確な指示が一切ないまま、１２日間の逃避行だった。

It was the 12-day flight, without any clear direction from the national government or TEPCO.

　「原発は安全」。これまで、そんな説明を何度も聞いていた。それを前提とした生活がすべて崩れた。

"Nuclear plant is safe". She had heard such explanation a number of times. Her life, based on that word, has crumbled to pieces.

　しかし、原発のおかげで住民が恩恵を受けてきたのは事実なのだ。「原発だけ悪いなんて、私たちはいえないのよ」。みさ子はため息をつく。（前田基行）

However, it is also true that the residents have benefited from the nuclear power plant. "We cannot say that only the nuclear plant is bad", Misako sighs.

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Not only the Fukushima prefectural government had the SPEEDI data, but it also had the simulation data given by TEPCO. It decided to sit on both sets of data. The same is true for the national government.

Futaba-machi, where Misako's second daughter lived and where Fukushima I Nuke Plant is located, did receive at least the simulation data from TEPCO, and the town duly informed the residents to evacuate. The national government did tell the town to evacuate.

Namie-machi did benefit from nuclear power, as it received the special subsidy from the national government for a number of years for having agreed to let Tohoku Electric Power Company plan a nuclear power plant construction in the town.

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