Inside Fukushima's red zone: Eerie pictures show abandoned schools, hospitals ... trends now
Fukushima has been frozen in time for more than a decade since a powerful earthquake triggered a tsunami, causing one of the worst nuclear disasters in history.
When the 9.0-magnitude quake struck on March 11, 2011, waves of more than 33ft (10 metres) overcame insufficient sea defences, destroying backup generators and triggering meltdowns in three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant.
It released hydrogen and radioactive materials and some 160,000 residents were evacuated from the surrounding area, many of whom have never been able to return home, abandoning their homes, businesses and belongings.
Entry to some of the zones, which continue to have relatively high radiation levels, remains strictly limited, with 'difficult-to-return' areas only accessible with permission.
Now, a British urban explorer has lifted the lid on the untouched world of the Japanese prefecture's 'red zone' - sneaking into abandoned buildings including the nuclear control room itself, and sharing eerie pictures of what he has discovered.
Urban explorer Lukka Ventures is seen standing in front of an abandoned Sega World, a popular amusement arcade chain in Japan
Businesses in the abandoned area remain shuttered 13 years on from the devastating nuclear accident
Classrooms sit empty, with school bags seen on children's desks exactly where they left them
Lukka snooped round abandoned hospitals, malls and apartments which he said were untouched by time
An empty launderette is seen with pamphlets scattered across the floor after people left in haste
Wrecked cars are seen in an overgrown lot. Some 160,000 residents were evacuated in 2011
Lukka is seen pretending to hold a phone as he sits at what appears to be a control panel
Lukka Ventures, 27, has been exploring abandoned buildings in the UK for four years, and decided to explore the 'red zones' after watching a documentary on the Fukushima disaster.
He snooped round abandoned hospitals, malls and apartments which he said were untouched by time.
Lukka, who is from Manchester, described his visit as 'a very surreal experience.'
'Everything had been left, there were calendars on the wall were fixed on the same date of the disaster,' he said.
'You will walk into a building and there is stuff all over the floor.
'Animals have got in and tried to get food, you can see that the earthquake shook everything onto the floor.'
Lukka, spent four days in the Fukushima red zones in February 2024, sharing his findings on his YouTube channel.
He carried a Geiger counter - an electronic instrument used for detecting and measuring ionizing radiation - to make sure he wasn't exposing himself.
He said: 'We were sneaking through rivers and fences. We had to be really careful of how radiated some of the areas were.
Images from inside what appears to be a child's bedroom showing posters on the wall, soft toys and clothes strewn about
Go Karts are seen at an abandoned race track in the affected area, which now appears to be overgrown
Lukka and friends are seen at a gaming arcade, sitting at consoles and pretending to play
Supermarket shelves still have food on them more than a decade on, with products also seen scattered around the floor
Lukka said: 'Animals have got in and tried to get food, you can see that the earthquake shook everything onto the floor'. Pictured: An abandoned diner
'It was so so surreal. You would go into shopping centres and they would have food on the shelf.
'Everything has been left. Every building we went into was really weird.'
Lukka also found a nuclear bunker in what he suggested was a training centre.
He said: 'We entered a big glass building which had a model of the reactor in the lobby. We were close to the power plant that exploded.
An empty office with rubbish spread across the floor and a doll seen in the corner
A boot, linen and chairs are seen in what appears to be a hospital corridor
A school gymnasium remains as it was when it was left by staff and students for the final time
Books and papers have fallen from shelves, lying in piles on the ground for years
'We walked around the building and there were rooms that had nuclear controllers in there.'
The YouTuber shared pictures of himself pretending to be on the phone in front of what appeared to be a control
