'He wanted to be there for every [cat] that still needed him': 57-year-old Japanese businessman abandons everything to care for homeless cats in an uninhabitable nuclear zone for more than 10 years

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Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager
Mar 27, 2026 8:00 PM EDT

When others left, Sakae Kato stayed. After the Fukushima prefecture in Japan became uninhabitable due to radiation clouds leaking from the nearby Fukushima nuclear plant, 160,000 people abandoned their homes and their pets. For more than 10 years, he rescued forgotten animals who had been left behind. At one point, Kato was caring for up to 40 cats inside his home. He said his life's mission was to take care of every last one, because if he didn't, who would?

Not all heroes wear capes, and not all angels have wings.

Sakae Kato pawsitively sacrificed everything, including his own health, after everyone else moved on. Over 160,000 people abandoned their lives in Fukushima after the surrounding area became uninhabitable due to the nuclear power plant nearby, but many were left behind. All of them had four legs, and none of them understood why they suddenly found themselves all alone. Kato couldn't handle the fact that so many beloved creatures were suddenly left alone, so he stayed behind to rescue and care for them. 

Just to make you understand the intensity of this decision, a purrfectly crucial fact is that Kato lives with no running water. He travels to a mountain spring to collect what he needs, not just for himself, but for the more than 40 cats he cares for, as well as the other animals he's collected along the way. For 10 years, he's cared for these left-behind pets, all alone. This is the true meaning of sacrifice.

This is a man who is willing to put the needs of others before himself, and not just when it's convenient for him. He changed the course of his life to protect others who can't protect themselves, and here at I Can Has Cheezburger, we will always consider him a hero.

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  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10618120960
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato walks past black bags containing contaminated soil from the fallout of the Fukushima nuclear plant, in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 21, 2021"

  • 02
    When more than 160,000 people evacuated the nuclear zone after the 2011 disaster in Fukushima, one man chose to stay behind. Sakae Kato had been helping clear abandoned homes when he began finding pets left behind. Some had not survived. Others were still alive... waiting. He couldn't walk away.
    via iheartcatscom
  • 03
    Cheezburger Image 10618119936
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato holds a flash light in his mouth as he climbs up a ladder onto the second floor of an abandoned house that Kato converted into a cat shelter, on his property in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan on February 20, 2021."

  • 04
    For more than a decade, Kato has lived alone in the restricted area of Namie, caring for the animals no one else returned for. With no running water, he collects what he needs from a mountain spring and travels to public facilities when necessary. Most of what he earns goes directly toward food, fuel, and veterinary care.
    via iheartcatscom

  • Caring for 40 cats is not cheap. That's a lot of cat food, not to mention any necessary medicine they might need. But who needs money when you have the unlimited love of the cats you've saved? That's enough comfort for him, apparently.

  • 05
    MAINI KANA
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato eats instant noodles for dinner at his home in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 20, 2021."

  • 06
    At one point, he was caring for over 40 cats inside his home, continuing to provide for them day after day. In an interview, he shared a simple but powerful reason for staying: he wanted to be there for every last animal that still needed him.
    via iheartcatscom
  • 07
    Cheezburger Image 10618120192
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato cleans cat cages at his home, in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 20, 2021"

  • 08
    His life is not easy. But his purpose is clear. Some people leave when everything changes. Others stay... because someone still needs them.
    via iheartcatscom
  • 09
    Cheezburger Image 10618121472
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato holds Mokkun, a rescued cat, while an animal rescue activist applies an ointment onto its mouth at Kato's home, in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 21, 2021"

  • 10
    iheartcatscom To stay behind and dedicate your life to animals others left... that kind of compassion is hard to put into words.
    via iheartcatscom

  • Kato is truly one in a billion. Would you stay behind, give up your life, your worldly pawssessions, your business, and your family to stay behind and care for those cats? That's a huge sacrifice, and we're glad there's still someone on this Earth who would do it.

  • 11
    Cheezburger Image 10618120448
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato prepares to feed wild boars in front of his home, in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 20, 2021"

  • 12
    d.yana49 If no one will be like him, what will happend to the abandoned animals there. He's the choosen one
    via d.yana49
  • 13
    bladekiartist I'm glad someone like him did this because I would too! Cats deserved to be rescued and saved even during dire times of peril!
    via bladekiartist
  • 14
    s_grecs_mrs.1111 I wish the people in Dubai could see this. Instead of abandoning their animals. This man is a saint and he'll have made more of an impact in this world than so many other people. It would be great if there was information to donate funds to his cause.
    via s_grecs_mrs.1111
  • 15
    000 亥亥亥亥亥亥亥亥亥 ** *** *** *** *** *** *** *
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "Sakae Kato lies in bed next to Charm, a cat who he rescued five years ago who is infected with feline leukemia virus, at his home in a restricted zone in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 20, 2021"

  • 16
    never.be.silent A true hero
    via never.be.silent
  • 17
    chynniescakery I hope that he get subsidized so that he'll have enough for himself and for the animals he is caring for.
    via chynniescakery
  • 18
    ghoshani What's the point saving your life when you cannot save other voiceless life. Would any day stay behind with these pure souls than run away with humans (the most problematic and not so peaceful species)
    via ghoshani
  • 19
    Cheezburger Image 10618120704
    via Kim Kyung-Hoon, Reuters

    "An aerial view shows Sakae Kato walking Pochi, his dog that he rescued four years ago, on an empty road between restricted zones in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, February 20, 2021"

  • 20
    iantenbears Not all heros wear capes
    via iantenbears
  • 21
    nurulowne.812 To know that this kind of human is living somewhere on earth, give me hopes, the earth is still worth living to. Thank you, good man
    via nurulowne.812

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Tags

stray cats homeless nuclear Japan Cats business animals cat lovers
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