Tokyo, Jan 27 : Six Japanese youth on Thursday sued the operator of Fukushima nuclear plant after they developed thyroid cancer following the 2011 nuclear disaster. The victims were aged between six to 16 years at the time of the disaster. BBC quoted their lawyer as saying that the six youth got cancer from radiation exposure and all of them underwent surgery to remove parts or all of their thyroid glands.
They have sought $5.4 million in compensation from the plant operator of Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). The Fukushima disaster took place on March 11, 2011 due to a massive earthquake off north-east Japan triggering a tsunami.
It led to a nuclear meltdown. According to BBC, it was the worst nuclear power incident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine, but has been considered vastly less damaging to local people because far lower quantities of radioactive iodine were released. In 2018, the Japanese government announced the death of one worker after exposure to radiation.
