Man Saves The Forgotten Cats At The Fukushima's Nuclear Zone

Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor

Mar 18, 2021 9:00 AM EDT

For over a decade, Sakae Kato has stayed behind in Fukushima, rescuing cats abandoned by neighbors who fled the radiation clouds emanating from the nearby Fukushima nuclear plant. He refuses to leave.

His story is one of heartbreak and selflessness, and we are thankful for all the work that he's done.

"I want to make sure I am here to take care of the last one," Kato said from his home in the contaminated quarantine zone. "After that I want to die, whether that be a day or hour later."

Read more about his incredible story below.

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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

According to ABC, Kato is currently looking after 41 cats and has buried 23 cats in his garden. The most recent graves were unfortunately disturbed by wild boars that roam the depopulated community. He "leaves food for feral cats in a storage shed he heats with a paraffin stove."
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

He has also rescued a dog - Pochi. There's no running water, and because of that, he is forced to fill bottles from a nearby mountain spring and drive to public toilets. In his former life, Kato was a small construction business owner. Now, 57 years old, he explains that his decision to stay as 160,000 other people evacuated "was spurred in part by the shock of finding dead pets in abandoned houses he helped demolish."
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

The cats also gave him a real reason to stay on the land that has been owned by his family for three generations.
"I don't want to leave, I like living in these mountains," he explained, standing in front of his house, which he is allowed to visit but technically not allowed to sleep in.
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

His house doubles as a cat shelter, and two cats - Mokkun and Charm - who are infected with feline leukemia virus stay at his home. The house is currently in very bad condition. "It might last another two or three years. The walls have started to lean," Kato said.
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

"He estimates he spends $7,000 a month on his animals," partly to buy dog food for a wild boar that gathers near his house at sunset.
Though his story is not the most lighthearted one, it is very worthy of recognition. The work he does is selfless, and we imagine it is both gratifying and difficult in different ways. Read more about him in the original ABC article.
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

For more amazing animal stories, read about the 37-year friendship between a man and the swan he rescued.
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters
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via Kim Kyung-hoon/Reuters

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