As attempts to control the exploded nuclear reactors in Japan makes slow progress, attention is shifting to the thousands of people who became victim of the earthquake and the ensuing tsunami.

Two people have escaped alive from the rubble of their home. They managed to sustain themselves for days in the kitchen, buried deep under the wreckage of their home. One of them, a 16-year-old boy, was able to reach the fridge, allowing him to fetch milk and yoghurt for his grandmother, aged 80. They were both admitted to hospital suffering from severe hypothermia.

The rescue of the two provided a much-needed sign of hope for Japan, nine days after the double natural disaster struck. The official death toll is at 8,200 but the number of people missing is far higher, at 12,700. Half a million Japanese are homeless after the 11 March disaster, having found shelter in sports facilities and other reception centres. The closer they were to the disaster, the worse the circumstances with which they have to cope appear to be.

Meanwhile the authorities are preparing for a morbid duty. Police chief Naoto Takeuchi told the crisis team in Miyagi region to prepare space for the storage of 15,000 bodies.

Plutonium
The situation at the Fukushima reactors is slightly improved, the Japanese government said on Sunday, but much remains unclear. Engineers have managed to lower the temperature in two reactors by cooling with millions of litres of sea water. This has eliminated the need to let off steam from the systems. Pressure in the most critical, plutonium-holding reactor, appears to have stabilised. The management of the energy company that owns the sites, TEPCO, has said that the energy supply to the plants' cooling systems has been restored.

Radiation worries
It has been found that spinach and milk from the area around the nuclear plants is radioactive. The government has asked farmers not to bring their produce to the markets, promising them financial recompensation. Government spokesman Yukio Edano has called on consumers to stay calm, because the increased radiation levels are such that they do not pose a health risk. Unconfirmed reports claim that the tap water in Tokio is more radioactive than usual.

At some airports and harbours products and travellers from Japan are checked for increased radioactivity. The Dutch Safe Harbour Foundation has warned harbour workers in Rotterdam that they should not touch containers shipped in from Japan. The Port of Rotterdam authority said this warning is wildly exaggerated.

(rk)

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