A Note About Radiation

I know many of you have been concerned about us being over here with the "radiation scare".  And, indeed, for the people living near the Fukushima plant, it is a scary situation.  But I want to assure you that, though the media may make it seem like all of Japan is in catastrophe and is covered in radiation, this is not the case.

On April 16, the US Embassy downgraded the travel advisory issued originally issued on March 16 to US citizens in Japan. No one beyond the 50-mile evacuation zone needs to be worried about health risks (which includes us, living in the Miyagi prefecture)  They said,

"...while the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi plant remains serious and dynamic, the health and safety risks to areas beyond the 50 mile evacuation zone, and particularly to .... Ibaraki, Miyagi and Yamagata prefectures which are outside a 50 mile radius of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant are low and do not pose significant risks to U.S. citizens."

Also, Tohoku University has been monitoring the radiation situation in Sendai since March 18, and they have never found any health risks or abnormal radiation in Sendai.  In fact, the radiation in Sendai is lower than in some US cities (like San Diego). You can see their report here.

So the bottom line is that we are just as safe here as we would be in the United States.  We thank you for your prayers and your concern, but please know that there isn't any reason to be alarmed at our decision to continue to stay in Japan.

Please continue to pray for those who have lost so much in the earthquake and tsunami.  And please pray that God would use this situation to point others to himself.  Thank you and much love to you all!