The U.S. Embassy in Japan has asked American citizens living within an 80-kilometer radius of the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant in Japan to evacuate as a precautionary measure.
“We are recommending, as a precaution, that American citizens who live within 50 miles (80 kilometers) of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant evacuate the area or to take shelter indoors if safe evacuation is not practical,” the embassy said in the advice issued Thursday local time.
The Japanese government currently sets the evacuation zone covering areas within a 20-km radius of the plant and advises those within a 30-km radius to stay indoors.
Meanwhile, Britain on Wednesday advised its nationals living in Tokyo and areas north of the Japanese capital to evacuate in light of an ongoing nuclear crisis at the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant in northeastern Japan.
It said the British Embassy in Japan plans to arrange free buses from Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture to Tokyo on Thursday for evacuating British nationals. It also advised against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and northeastern Japan.
“For those outside the exclusion zone set up by the Japanese authorities there is no real human health issue that people should be concerned about,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.