A beach in Fukushima Prefecture opened to the public Saturday for the first time since the country began releasing treated water from its meltdown-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant into the ocean last August.
At the opening ceremony of Kitaizumi beach in the city of Minamisoma, a Shinto priest prayed for safety and local children performed a dance before the beach's opening was announced.
The Fukushima Prefectural Government said last month that it could not detect tritium, a radioactive substance contained in the treated water, in seawater at eight beaches in the prefecture set to open this year.
"I'll let my children play in the sea because it is said to be okay," a woman in her 40s visiting the beach with her family from the Fukushima city of Tamura said regarding concerns over the water discharge.
"The waves here are fun," said Makoto Obama, 44, a resident of the city of Fukushima who visited the beach with kids also last year. "I want to come again."
Kitaizumi beach, known as a major surfing area, is located about 30 kilometers from the Fukushima No. 1 plant of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings.
The beach was closed during summer seasons following the 2011 massive earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan, which triggered the meltdowns at the plant, until its reopening in 2019. Some 22,800 people visited the beach last year, about a quarter of the number prior to the 2011 disaster.
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