Another tragedy may be unfolding in Fukushima. Almost a year after an earthquake and tsunami destroyed that city's nuclear plant, hundreds of the city's animals are dying for want of food.
On March 12, the day after the quake and tsunami hit, 78,000 people were evacuated out of this area, believing they would return within a few days. As such, thousands of people left with their dogs tied up in the backyard, cats in their houses and livestock penned in barns.
Nearly a year later, animal carcasses litter the region.
CNN's Kyung Lah traveled to the exclusion zone to see for herself (warning, not for the faint of heart):
United Kennel Club Japan has managed to rescue 250 dogs and 150 cats, all of whom are now housed at its shelter near Tokyo. While it has tracked down 80 percent of the owners, there has been virtually no chance to reunite them since so many of the owners still live in temporary facilities that don't allow pets.
The government says it has taken a "prudent" approach to rescuing any animals in the exclusion zone, out of concern for any humans entering it. That doesn't cut ice with UKC Japan.
"It's shameful," says Yasunori Hoso with United Kennel Club Japan. "We kept asking the government to rescue these animals from the beginning of the disaster. There must have been a way to rescue the people and the animals at the same time following the nuclear disaster at Fukushima."
Couldn't agree more.