The governor of Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Japan has approved the restart of the No.2 reactor at Tohoku Electric Power Company's Onagawa nuclear plant. The reactor is the first in the region affected by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami to win local consent for restart.

The assemblies of Onagawa Town and Ishinomaki City, which host the plant, as well as the Miyagi prefectural assembly had earlier agreed to allow the reactor to go back online.

The governor of Miyagi Prefecture has announced a decision to approve the restart of a nuclear reactor in the northeastern prefecture of Japan.

The No.2 reactor of Tohoku Electric Power Company's Onagawa plant is the first in the region to win local approval to go back online. The area was hit hard by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

NHK has learned that Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Japan now allows its residents living near a nuclear power plant to receive iodine tablets by mail to minimize person-to-person contact and help prevent coronavirus infection.

The prefecture changed its rule in response to a call from the central government's Cabinet Office to consider ways to distribute the tablets without such contact.

The Miyagi prefectural assembly has given a nod to restarting a nuclear reactor in the northeastern prefecture of Japan.

If final approval is given by the prefectural governor, the No.2 reactor of Tohoku Electric Power Company's Onagawa plant will be the first to go back online in the region, which was hit hard by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Japan plans to promote a four-day work week for care workers as part of work reform measures to attract more to the field.

Japan's health ministry estimates the prefecture will face a shortage of more than 4,700 of such caregivers in fiscal 2025.