Thousands of people fled from their homes, offices and schools over 10 years ago after a devastating earthquake and tsunami caused a meltdown at a nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan.
Part of the town of Tomioka, about 10 kilometres (6 miles) from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, is still a no-go zone 10 years after a meltdown sent radioactive fallout over the area.
More than 15,000 residents living in 6,000 houses were forced to evacuate in March 2011 because of safety fears concerning dangerous radiation levels.
By and large, people are nowhere to be found. Newly paved but empty streets and brand-new train stations without a single passenger to be seen coexist in the restricted access area, where homes and businesses also remain abandoned.
On April 1, 2017, the evacuation order was lifted for most of the town except for the northeastern areas, allowing many residents to return. However Tomioka’s future is a bit uncertain.
Tsunami-damaged buildings still stand, cars smashed like soda cans are piled up, and vending machines washed in by the tsunami have not yet been scrapped. Expanses of bags full of radioactive soil can be seen in the background.
