"North Korean soldiers and their families are being treated in a
military hospital for radiation exposure after the September hydrogen
bomb test at the Punggye-ri nuclear facility.
"More than a thousand
troops of the North Korean army were deployed to the site to dig
tunnels and patrol the surrounding area, Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun reported Wednesday, citing anonymous sources with knowledge of North Korean affairs.
"The news comes after reports in the Japanese press indicated that around 200 people died in an accident at the facility due to a tunnel collapse in October.
"After reporting a series of small earthquakes
and a landslide in the area near where the facility is located, south
of the Mantapsan mountain, several experts have warned that the site has
become too unstable to host further nuclear experiments. Another bomb
test would risk a massive collapse and radioactive leaks, Chinese geologists warned.
"According to researchers writing for the North Korea monitoring website 38 North, North Korean scientists were unlikely to abandon the site altogether, trying instead to build new underground tunnels to move the test facility to another part of the mountain.
"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reacts with members of the Korean
People's Army in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean
Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 15. More than a thousand troops were
deployed to the nuclear test facility in Punggye-ri, sources told a
Japanese newspaper. KCNA/via Reuters
"Concerns
over radiation leaks from the North Korean nuclear test site continue
to grow in Japan, a country that has suffered enormously from the
consequences of nuclear bombs from world War II and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
"According
to the Asahi newspaper report, a computer simulation of possible leaks
of radioactive materials ran by the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and
Technology (KIOST) showed that meteorological conditions at the time of
North Korea’s nuclear test would have allowed for radioactive materials
to carry into the atmosphere in a northeastern direction.
"They would affect a wide area touching upon Russia, the Kuril Islands and the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.
"South
Korean, Chinese and Japanese authorities recorded no abnormal radiation
levels in the immediate aftermath of the test. The Japanese Nuclear
Regulation Authority said at the time radioactive substances would not
be released into the atmosphere in case of an underground nuclear test.
"But Chinese nuclear weapons expert Wei Shijie told The Telegraphthat
a nuclear leak was 'inevitable.' He said: 'It is just a matter of time
to detect it, because there are cracks on mountains where radioactive
substances will leak.'"
"About 200 people are feared dead in North Korea
after underground tunnels at a nuclear test site that was feared to be
unstable reportedly collapsed, crushing 100 people in the initial
cave-in and 100 others when the tunnels again gave way on top of
rescuers.
"The collapse at the Punggye-ri test site on Oct. 10 occurred while people were doing construction on the underground tunnel, Japan’s Asahi TV
reported, citing a source in North Korea. The television station also
said North Korea’s sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3 most likely caused the
tunnel to crumble and created serious damage in the region.
"No officials have confirmed the Japanese TV station’s
claims, but experts have feared for more than a month that the test site
was on the verge of crumbling since the nuclear blast. North Korea said
it detonated a hydrogen bomb, calling it a 'perfect success.' It was
the country’s most powerful bomb tested to date and the blast was
reportedly 10 times more powerful than the nuclear bomb that was dropped
over Hiroshima at the end of World War II.
"The test triggered a 6.3-magnitude earthquake that day and multiple
tremors have been detected from the area since then. Satellite images
obtained by 38 North,
which specializes in North Korea issues, showed several landslides
occurred after the Sept. 3 test. Also a possible 'collapse chimney
crater' was seen on Mount Mantap, possibly caused by the underground
tests. "It’s unclear if the mountain will collapse in the near
future, but the report said there was 'significant cracking' and 'irreversible strain' on the land because of the nuclear test. "Some experts also said Mantap was suffering from 'tired mountain syndrome' due to the stress on the ground, the Washington Post reported.
Chinese scientists have also warned the mountain could collapse and
release radiation. Radioactive xenon-133 was detected in South Korea
after the test.
"Additionally on Tuesday, North Korea rebuked Trump and the U.S.,
saying 'the Trump group's vicious vituperation against the DPRK is an
expression of their frustration, fear and horror,' according to a
statement released by state-run Korean Central News Agency. The day
before, the Hermit Kingdom blamed Trump’s 'extreme, direct and long
threats' for driving them to obtain 'complete nuclear deterrence.' "'The U.S. has to ponder over the possible consequences,' the statement said."
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