World News for Students of English

28-04-2015 07:00

High levels of radiation have been discovered in a children’s park in Japan. The find has revived concerns about nuclear contamination four years after the Fukushima disaster. Nuclear regulators measured elevated radiation levels in the playground which is more than 155 miles (249 kilometres) from the crippled plant.

Soil underneath a slide registered 418 microsieverts per hour – nearly half the recommended annual limit of exposure. It was not immediately clear why radiation levels were high in the park, though officials do not believe it is connected to the disaster at Fukushima.

The park has now been fenced off and a health advice center has been opened to help concerned parents. Authorities were made aware of the contamination after a local resident reported it. Families in eastern Japan continue to survey the levels of radioactive contamination around their houses. Many feel distrustful to government assurances that most places were not affected by the Fukushima meltdown.

Difficult words: revive (to bring back), elevated (higher than normal), plant (power plant/station), soil (earth), micro- (one millionth of), sievert (the SI unit for radiation), annual (yearly), concerned (to worry), survey (to examine), assurance (something you say to make people calm), meltdown (a collapse).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com