Nuclear evacuation drill held in Ehime Prefecture
Evacuation drills for a serious accident at a nuclear power plant were held in Ehime and Shimane prefectures, both in western Japan.

The evacuation zones around nuclear plants were expanded from 10 kilometers to 30 kilometers after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant last March.

The drill in Ehime was based on a scenario of a reactor cooling system failure at the Ikata nuclear power plant after a huge earthquake. Temblors have raised fears of radioactive substances leaking from the plant.

About 10,000 people -- the largest ever -- took part in the evacuation drill, which made use of full-size buses and helicopters. In addition, Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels were mobilized for the first time.
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