The man who saves forgotten cats in Fukushima's nuclear zone

Powerful article. Actually I am a little lost for words.

A timely reminder, as we approach the 10th anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami, that things are far from ‘under control’, never mind fixed.

I take my hat off to him.

Firstly what this chap is doing is very commendable and he should get a subsidy for feeding all of these cats, etc, "He is looking after 41 others in his home and another empty building on his property". ive been in a few houses that have pets, but in his case all of those cat? jees, that house must stink.

IF. he was to take materials from another deralict house to fix his, would he, or could he be arested for theft? could he occupy another house as its been abbandoned?

He is being detained as we speak?

What an unecessary arrest! Free him immediately

A decade ago, Sakae Kato stayed behind to rescue cats abandoned by neighbors who fled the radiation clouds belching from the nearby Fukushima nuclear plant. He won't leave

Mr. Kato should have a well-deserved subsidy over GoTo travel business owners,Dentsu and such.

This man is a hero in every way!

Surely he spends 70,000 JPY a month, not ¥700,000?

Depends how much dog food he's buying for the wild boar?

Judging from the dishes piled with food in the photo, the cats are certainly not going without.

Interesting that he has pee-pads spread out instead of litter boxes. With no running water and presumably no rubbish collection, he manages by burning the pads? With 41 cats, a constant supply of pee-pads would cost a fair bit.

Still, 700,000 yen sounds a bit steep.

I hope he gets off on the wild boar charge.

Good point,Zichi.

If he started a fund page he would be sorted.

I wonder if they have internet where he lives because everything has been abandoned.

It is that time of year.....in fact 10 years almost to the date that the big one struck.

At that time many of us expats in Japan relied almost exclusively on Zichi for his updates on the situation.

His knowledge and information were a godsend.

I thank you again my friend for it.

Your updates were awesome and kept most of us from being in the total dark.

Anyone here in the comments who is supporting this dude should first think about what it might be like if you were his neighbor.

He doesn’t have any neighbors, that’s the whole point. They all evacuated. And left their cats behind.

why is he "wearing" a mask? There is literally NO ONE around. At all!

Kim Kyung-hoon the photographer is there.

What a kind and caring person.

whether he has mental health issues, or not, all the condemnation and negativity towards this man is just plain wrong.

in his heart he is helping defenceless, abandoned animals.

maybe he sees this as his mission.

yes he needs help, where’s the govt?

Modern day, St Francis ....

Finally, how does he obtain all that cat and dog food? Amazon? Kuro neko? Surely, not the local pet store, which must be may kilometers away and out of the radiation zone? This article missed a few points of interest!

He's fallen asleep holding his phone!

@JT. Surely he spends 70,000 JPY a month, not ¥700,000? (Or should it be 700,000 a year?)

Can't the cats pee outside....?

Looking at the photo...why is he "wearing" a mask? There is literally NO ONE around. At all!

Admire him for his actions, though, and agree, why hasn't he applied for subsidies and gone on social media to ask for help? A "Go Fund Me and my cats and wild boar"?

Maybe ARK could help with a fund me campaign. I think the problem with feral cats is that they cannot be adopted. They are too used to the feral life.

ARK rescued animals ten years ago.

With him being detained who is taking care of the cats? Like him I could not just let a boar starve to death in a trap. I just couldn't do it. There must be a special place in heaven for someone with a heart for animals like him.

His pets should be humanely exterminated.

There is no such thing.

While it looks like he's doing good in the greater sense, he should really help relocate the animals instead of staying there as it unnecessarily creates a separate problem that others will have to manage.

Stories like this help a lot, not only because they inspire but also because they help reminding the tragedy that is still ongoing to this day.

700,000 a month, meaning 8.4 MILLION per year, times roughly 10 years??????

Cripes with that much money he could have built a few new homes for all those cats. He does or used to own a construction company, so it's not like he doesnt have the know-how, or evidently lack of money!

Something tells me there is a hell of a lot more going on here than being shared in the article.

The owners left 10 years ago, and he still has 41 cats. He's breeding them.

Cats can live up to 20 years, they aren't necessarily breeding.

The neutering of these cats should be funded

Agreed, if they aren't neutered already.

he needs to get out.

It's his life, his choice.

I think there's some thing that needs to be cleared up. These are not feral cats, they were abandoned by the owners or so goes this article. If this is the case then by the logic that many pet owners delcare that their pets are like their children or family, he is basically taking care of an abandoned family member. I don't think the "crazy cat woman" or in this case man, stereotype holds under this situation. Would we say the same if they were orphaned and abandoned children? He needs to be supported and funded, and I'm sure the vet is helping him with the TNR.

Those that that blast this man I assume hate cats. It did say he has a vet come out periodically so maybe the vet is helping fix the cats. Regardless the man has a heart for animals that shows a lot. I’m sure if a local paper in Tokyo would pick this story up he would have financial help from people who believes his cause. God bless him.

@zichi

If you doubt what radiation is doing to living creatures around the area then you should maybe ask yourself why one of his cats is dying of leukemia-coincidence?

"extermination" - the killing of a living creature which does not want to die.

The process - trap the living creature, transport her, keep her in a cage with several other living beings or alone - either is terrifying - then shove her in a metal box with several other living beings and slowly gas her.

This is not humane.

I think there's some thing that needs to be cleared up. These are not feral cats, they were abandoned by the owners or so goes this article.

From the article

"Kato leaves food for feral cats in a storage shed he heats with a paraffin stove."

Imagine the stench.

Cats can live up to 20 years, they aren't necessarily breeding.

LOL. No, I'm sure they're being very good and resisting their natural urges, and/or using contraception when they do!

There is no such thing.

Absolutely there is. Carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, or nitrogen will all put any mammal to sleep, and you'll never wake up.

I'm sure they're being very good and resisting their natural urges

If they were neutered by their original families (which they should have been) they don't have any natural urges in that direction.

These are not feral cats, they were abandoned by the owners or so goes this article.

The owners left 10 years ago, and he still has 41 cats. He's breeding them.

Would we say the same if they were orphaned and abandoned children?

Of course not, but they are moggies, not kids.

He needs to be supported and funded

The neutering of these cats should be funded, he needs to get out.

Seems like a mental health problem to me. He himself has actually gone feral.

Anyone here in the comments who is supporting this dude should first think about what it might be like if you were his neighbor.

He needs some help for sure but not more funds to continue the craziness.

He is not that dissimilar to those peeps who compulsively store stuff in their house.

If it's not a pet, it's wrecking the eco-system, as is this man.

As much of a cat lover as I am, I have to agree with this. Cats wreak havoc on native species, especially when they are in close proximity to scarce habitats. Pheasants and their young are particuarly prone to predation, and they are Japan's national bird. FeraI cats are a serious ecological problem in Japan, and I doubt his cats have been neutered.

I admire this man's compassion, but even well-fed cats are responsible for killing billions of birds and rodents each year. His pets should be humanely exterminated.

Mental. The guy needs help, not his cats.

The dude is obviously rich, or has hit the mattresses in all the abandoned houses.

Cats look clean but extremely dirty especially with those front claws digging in dirt and soiling it with their feces. I cannot believe he has not gotten scratched and infected. Can send you to a hospital within hours.

I wish a picture of the boars were shown. No need to say wild in front of them. They are and extremely smart

So stupid.

The cats aren't pets, they are pests.

Culling them is the most humane thing to do with them.

Same for wild dogs.

If it's not a pet, it's wrecking the eco-system, as is this man.