March 11, 2011: A day that the Japanese will remember for as long as they live. From the 9.0-magnitude earthquake, to the tsunamis, and finally to the explosion of the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, people by the dozens were forced to evacuate and leave their lives behind. Five years later, the aftermath of that fateful day has never been seen by the public eye – that is, until today.
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Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
When Malaysian photographer Keow Wee Loong found out that it would take 3-4 weeks to get a permit for the area, he decided to sneak in through the neighbouring forest and venture into the Fukushima ghost towns in nothing more than the clothes on his back and a gas mask. Reckless as it may seem, his adventure brought us these eerie glimpses into the aftermaths of the disaster – the first we have seen of that area. How chilling must it be to be the only person exploring a ghost town that’s frozen in time?
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
See, this was what I meant. While the world moves on, it will forever be March 2011 in Fukushima. Tell me that doesn’t send chills down your spine.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
Other than the mess on the floor, the items in the supermarkets and pharmacy stores remain untouched. It’s all still neatly arranged on the shelves…as if someone would still come to peruse them as they would on any normal day.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
There are literally no signs of movement or life here. No humans, no vehicles, nothing. One can only imagine how still and silent the place must be.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
One of the only things that move there are the traffic lights, which for some reason, are still working even though the vehicles and people are long gone. It’s as if the town is stuck in Groundhog Day – creepy, isn’t it?
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
One of the many abandoned houses in the ghost town. You can practically see how abruptly the townspeople were forced to evacuate.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
There was even an unopened PS2 box in one of the houses. Amazing how this is still around, isn’t it? It didn’t escape Keow’s notice either – he saw “food, money, gold, laptop and other valuables” all lying around untouched, unlike Chernobyl, which was looted clean within months. Five years later, almost everything in Fukushima is still untouched. Absolutely incredible.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
Even the laundry had to be abandoned.
Image credit: Keow Wee Loong
It’s as though life still goes on in this ghost town, but the calendars, books and items you see scattered around the area is enough to tell you that it will forever be March 11, 2011.
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Check out the rest of Wee Loong’s Fukushima photos and see if you can make it through his entire album without getting goosebumps! I guarantee you that you won’t.