1,670 children living near nuclear plant

TOKYO, June 10 (UPI) -- Hundreds of children are living within 20 miles of the Fukushima nuclear plant, against the advice of the Japanese government, a newspaper says.

Local officials confirmed there are 1,670 children in the emergency preparation zone 12 to 20 miles from the crippled plant, The Yomiuri Shimbun reported Thursday. The government recommends young children, pregnant women and people who require nursing care because of age, illness or disability not remain in the zone but has not mandated their evacuation.

The government also announced four locations in northern Japan have been added to a list of areas affected by nuclear radiation from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Date city official Takayuki Sato said three of the four new listings -- all beyond the evacuation zone -- are in the Ryozenmachi area, CNN reported Friday.

They include about 180 households about 31 miles from the site, the report said.

Government information for the three locations showed an estimated radiation level of 20.1 to 20.8 millisieverts per year, CNN said. The average resident of an industrialized country receives a dose of about 3 millisieverts per year.

The fourth spot is in the Haramachi neighborhood of Minamisoma, about 20 miles from the plant.

Officials have been battling a nuclear crisis at the Fukushima plant since northern Japan was rocked by an earthquake and tsunami March 11.