On 26 April 1986, the most disastrous technological error man ever faced happened. Chernobyl nuclear reactor number 4 exploded. It was expected to be a safety experiment for the reactor but unfortunately the experiment didn’t obey procedures. Massive rainbow blow aired above Chernobyl plant near Pripyat, Ukraine. The disaster was rated 7, the highest rate of International Nuclear Event Scale (INES).

The effect spread from Russia until Italy. The three countries that suffered most were Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. The disaster released 400 times more energy than the Hiroshima atomic bomb. Chernobyl held the highest rate until an earthquake and a tsunami took effect in Fukushima Nuclear Plant. On 11 March 2011, more than six years after a massive earthquake and tsunami struck Aceh of Indonesia and many more Indian Ocean rim countries, another natural disaster happened in Japan. Almost at 3 pm local time, people in the northeast coast of Japan were shocked by a 9.0 magnitude strength earthquake. Buildings, roads and bridges were broken disrupting peaceful life in Japan. After the quake, the sea wave hit the coast and city, and  a tsunami devastated several areas.

Near the epicenter, Fukushima Nuclear Plant was also affected by the quake. Some parts of the plant suffered damages. The worst was yet to come until 15 minutes after the quake. A Tsunami hit the area near the coast, including the nuclear plant. Actually, the plant is already protected by a 5.7 meter high wall, but it was not enough to withstand the 14 meters high sea wave. The tsunami made the cooling system fail to work properly. The power supply was off and started the system failure. Then the suspense of the nuclear crisis began.

The reactor could not be cooled down by the system. It made the temperature rise constantly and an explosion was potential. Radiation fallout is an immense threat until now. Some measures were taken by the Government of Japan. Yukio Edano, Chief Cabinet Secretary,ensured international and domestic public that the Government of Japan did their best to contain the radiation leak. Shortly after the radiation leak, the Government announced 20 kilometers of prohibited area. A range of between 20 – 40 kilometers was suggested and people were told to stay at home if they cannot move any farther.

TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company), the operator of Fukushima Nuclear Plant, was trying to reduce the heat in the plant. The emergency
workers injected seawater into the cooling pump which already dried. As a consequence of the decision, the radiation steam spread into the sky and fell inland and into the sea. The radiation also leaked in the water system of Tokyo and it gave major concern on the health of the public. The Government of Japan always monitors the radiation rate. If the rate of radiation exceeded the allowed limit, the Government announced it to the public. It happened when the radiation rate was  over the allowed limit in the Tokyo water tap system. Vegetables between the ranges of the dangerous area cannot be consumed.

After one month, the Government raised the scale of the disaster to 7 from 4 INES. It means that it was equivalent with Chernobyl. Some countries suggested their citizens to leave Japan or at least avoid the earthquake shocked region heading to southern Japan for safety. Meanwhile, the Government of Indonesia evacuated Indonesian citizens from the nuclear radiation threatened areas in the earthquake
and tsunami hard hit region.  The Government of Japan said that the amount of radiation leak is only 10 percent from that of the Chernobyl disaster.