Futaba is a town in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan., the town had an actual population of zero, although as of 2017, the official registered population was 6,093 in 2,301 households. The total area of the town is. However, as of March 2011, the entire population was evacuated as a result of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. Since 2013, only 4% of the town has been open to visitors and residents, who are permitted to return only during daylight hours.
Per Japanese census data, the population of Futaba was relatively stable until the nuclear disaster.
Climate
Futaba has a humid climate. The average annual temperature in Futaba is. The average annual rainfall is with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around, and lowest in January, at around.
History
The area of present-day Futaba was part of Mutsu Province. The remains of Kofun periodburial mounds have been found in the area. During the Nara period, it was the center of ancient Futaba District in Iwaki Province During the Edo period, it was part of Sōma Domain, ruled by the Sōma clan until the Meiji restoration. Town records indicate that over 700 residents of the region died due to a tsunami in the 1611 Sanriku earthquake. The area was the site of the Battle of Iwaki during the Boshin War. On April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the modern municipalities system, the villages of Shinzan and Nagatsuka were created in Shineha District, Fukushima, which subsequently became Futaba District in April 1896. Shinzan was raised to town status on February 1, 1913. Shinzan merged with Nagatsuka on April 1, 1951 becoming the town of Shineha, which changed its name to Futaba on April 1, 1956.
Futaba was severely affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, and the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. Besides sustaining considerable damage from the earthquake and the tsunami, the entire population of the town was evacuated en masse on the morning ofMarch 12 as it is well within the exclusion radius around the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. On March 28, 2013, the central government rezoned the town into two areas according to level of radiation: in the first, people were free to go in and out but not allowed to stay overnight; in the second, all entry was forbidden because of elevated radiation levels that were not expected to go down within five years after the accident. However, only 4 percent of the town area zone was opened to daytime return of residents, and the town remained uninhabitable. As of 2017, the Japanese government is leading a cleanup of the town, aiming for 11 percent to be livable by spring 2022.
Economy
The economy of Futaba was heavily dependent on commercial fishing and agriculture. Raising of carnations was a major industry.
