Japan tsunami and earthquake: Foreign Office warns tourists not to travel to Tokyo
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The Foreign Office is continuing to advise British travellers against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and north east Japan as it revealed that more than 500 Britons in Japanhave been given iodine tablets to counteract the effects of radiationleaking from the country's crippled nuclear facility.The Foreign Office said the tablets,which are used to stop the body absorbing radioactive iodine, have beendistributed to around 540 British nationals so far but were handed out only to those people who had requested them.A FCO spokeswoman said: 'The British Embassy is distributing iodine tablets in Tokyo and Niigata as a contingency measure. People should wait until advised to take the tablets'. 
The Foreign Office is continuing to advise British travellers against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and north east Japan as it revealed that more than 500 Britons in Japanhave been given iodine tablets to counteract the effects of radiationleaking from the country's crippled nuclear facility.The Foreign Office said the tablets,which are used to stop the body absorbing radioactive iodine, have beendistributed to around 540 British nationals so far but were handed out only to those people who had requested them.A FCO spokeswoman said: 'The British Embassy is distributing iodine tablets in Tokyo and Niigata as a contingency measure. People should wait until advised to take the tablets'.
A woman checks the departures board at Narita International Airport. Commercial flights are continuing to operate to and from the airport east of Tokyo.
A photographer holds a radiation detector indicating 0.20 microsieverts per hour at a devastated factory area hit by earthquake and tsunami in Sendai
The UKs Chief Scientific Adviserhas said that there is currently no real human health issue for thoseoutside the exclusion zone set up by the Japanese authorities.Any British nationals within 80km of the Fukushima nuclear power planthave been advised to leave the area or take shelter indoors if they areunable to travel and to contact the Foreign Office's emergency hotlineon +44 20 7008 0000.
The exodus of British nationals fromJapan continued but the Foreign Office said there would be no moreGovernment-chartered seats made available on flights out of the countrytoday.Seven Britons left Japan on a CathayPacific flight to Hong Kong yesterday. It was the fourth flight to bemade available with Government-chartered seats in the last few days.S! ix Gover nment-chartered buses havealso run from tsunami-levelled Sendai to Tokyo in the same period,carrying 66 British nationals.
The exodus of British nationals fromJapan continued but the Foreign Office said there would be no moreGovernment-chartered seats made available on flights out of the countrytoday.Seven Britons left Japan on a CathayPacific flight to Hong Kong yesterday. It was the fourth flight to bemade available with Government-chartered seats in the last few days.S! ix Gover nment-chartered buses havealso run from tsunami-levelled Sendai to Tokyo in the same period,carrying 66 British nationals.
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Clear-up: A Japanese soldier looks up towards a ship blocking a road today as troops try and clear the way in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan
Calm: This image shows the coast at Minamisoma, Fukushima prefecture, before the tsunami hit on March 11
James Mundy, a spokesman forUK-based specialist tour operator Inside Japan, said the company hadcancelled several of its tours and put a hold on trips to Tokyo.
Our arm is twisted by the advicegiven by the Foreign Office', he told TravelMail. 'They are stilladvising against travel to Tokyo and we just have to wait until thatchanges.Several of our tour op! erators arecurrently in Tokyo and they have reported that the situation isimproving. Its not anarchy over there its actually a very calm,organised effort to restore the citys infrastructure. The shops arebeing re-stocked every day.Mr Mundy said that customers couldcancel and get a full refund or re-book for a date in the future at adiscounted rate if the Foreign Office was continuing to advise againstnon-essential travel three days in advance of their trip.'Weve had to cancel some of ourtours, such as the Northern Soul tour which visited Sendai, one of theworst affected cities. But its only the north-east that is a problem. Its business as usual for tour operators in the rest of thecountry', he said.
James Greenfield, MD of specialisttour operator Japan Journeys, said his company was also waiting for theForeign Office advice to change.
We cover the whole of Japan butmost of our trips include Tokyo. We have to follow the Foreign Officesadvice which is to avoid Tokyo so weve had to cancel quite a few ofour guided tours', he told TravelMail.
'We had a lot of cherry blossomtours arranged but weve had to cancel them for this year and most ofour customers have decided to travel this time next year instead.Independent travellers can postpone their trip for a future date or geta full refund.'
Our arm is twisted by the advicegiven by the Foreign Office', he told TravelMail. 'They are stilladvising against travel to Tokyo and we just have to wait until thatchanges.Several of our tour op! erators arecurrently in Tokyo and they have reported that the situation isimproving. Its not anarchy over there its actually a very calm,organised effort to restore the citys infrastructure. The shops arebeing re-stocked every day.Mr Mundy said that customers couldcancel and get a full refund or re-book for a date in the future at adiscounted rate if the Foreign Office was continuing to advise againstnon-essential travel three days in advance of their trip.'Weve had to cancel some of ourtours, such as the Northern Soul tour which visited Sendai, one of theworst affected cities. But its only the north-east that is a problem. Its business as usual for tour operators in the rest of thecountry', he said.
James Greenfield, MD of specialisttour operator Japan Journeys, said his company was also waiting for theForeign Office advice to change.
We cover the whole of Japan butmost of our trips include Tokyo. We have to follow the Foreign Officesadvice which is to avoid Tokyo so weve had to cancel quite a few ofour guided tours', he told TravelMail.
'We had a lot of cherry blossomtours arranged but weve had to cancel them for this year and most ofour customers have decided to travel this time next year instead.Independent travellers can postpone their trip for a future date or geta full refund.'
Hit: Cars are shown caught up in the maelstrom as the giant wave reaches Minamisoma
Radiation from Japans strickennuclear power plant has contaminated food, milk and tap water, sparkingcancer fears among an already anxious people.
The government was forced yesterdayto ban the sale of spinach from areas near Fukushima after testsrevealed that it contained radioactive iodine from the nuclear plant 27times above safety limits.
The contamination has also spread to tap water in Tokyo and to beans, milk and edible chrysanthemums produced near the plant.However,there was brighter news today fro! m the Da i-ichi plant, where engineersreported they had managed to restore power to two reactors.That should enable the emergency staff to cool the units and prevent a potentially catastrophic meltdown.
But the breakthrough was tempered with reports that pressure had unexpectedly risen at Unit 3.The making safe of two of the sixreactors represents the first ray of hope at the plant since it wascatastrophically damaged on March 11.Tokyo Electric Power Company saidUnits 5 and 6 were safe after days of pumping water into the reactors'pool brought temperatures down.Butthe two units are the least problematic of the six at the site whichbegan overheating after the earthquake-triggered tsunami disrupted theplant's cooling systems.Engineersreported that pressure had unexpectedly risen in a third unit at thereactor, raising the prospect that plant operators may need todeliberately release radioactive steam to relieve the problem.
The government was forced yesterdayto ban the sale of spinach from areas near Fukushima after testsrevealed that it contained radioactive iodine from the nuclear plant 27times above safety limits.
The contamination has also spread to tap water in Tokyo and to beans, milk and edible chrysanthemums produced near the plant.However,there was brighter news today fro! m the Da i-ichi plant, where engineersreported they had managed to restore power to two reactors.That should enable the emergency staff to cool the units and prevent a potentially catastrophic meltdown.
But the breakthrough was tempered with reports that pressure had unexpectedly risen at Unit 3.The making safe of two of the sixreactors represents the first ray of hope at the plant since it wascatastrophically damaged on March 11.Tokyo Electric Power Company saidUnits 5 and 6 were safe after days of pumping water into the reactors'pool brought temperatures down.Butthe two units are the least problematic of the six at the site whichbegan overheating after the earthquake-triggered tsunami disrupted theplant's cooling systems.Engineersreported that pressure had unexpectedly risen in a third unit at thereactor, raising the prospect that plant operators may need todeliberately release radioactive steam to relieve the problem.
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