Heartbreaking reason 'radioactive man' was kept alive in agony for 83 days despite begging to die
Hisashi Ouchi's story is even more tragic than you first thought
The story of the so-called 'radioactive man' is heartbreaking.
We (thankfully) can't imagine the horrors of being caught in a nuclear disaster, with accounts from the likes of Chernobyl and Fukushima being some of the most harrowing you'll ever read. Sadly, there are some who've learned the hard way about the dangers of radioactive material - like the man kept alive for 83 days after being hit with a lethal dose.
Hisashi Ouchi was caught in an accident at Japan's Tokaimura Nuclear Power Plant on 30 September 1999, being struck by 17,000 millisieverts (mSv) of radiation.
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Given that this is over three times what's considered a 'lethal' dose, it was a miracle that Ouchi survived at all.
Others who worked at the plant recorded up to 23 mSv, while local residents were hit by up to 15 mSv. Considering emergency workers at Chernobyl had between 20 and 500 mSv, it shows how bad the Tokaimura incident was.
Still, that's nothing compared to Ouchi's dosage. Despite the odds being stacked against him, Ouchi was rushed to hospital and kept alive for 83 days while doctors fought to save his life.
There were reports of blood leaking from Ouchi's eyes, and due to his lack of white blood cells to fight infection, he had to be kept on a special ward to try and prevent infection.
Revolutionary stem cell procedures were suggested by cell transplant specialist Hisamura Hirai, but ultimately, Ouchi died of multiple organ failure 83 days after the accident.
One of the saddest parts of the story is that Ouchi's family reportedly fought to keep him alive. Ouchi's own sister even donated her own stem cells, which seemed to work a while before he deteriorated worse than ever.
Ouchi is said to have shouted, "I can’t take it anymore, I am not a guinea pig," but after suffering a heart attack on his 59th day, his family agreed to resuscitate him. He suffered up to three heart attacks in an hour, and although he'd go one to live for several more weeks, it became clear there was nothing doctors could do.
The aftermath of the incident saw townspeople confined to their houses and testing to check radiation levels. Despite high levels, they were the lucky ones compared to Ouchi and his coworkers.
Masato Shinohara faced radiation of 10,000 mSv and Yutaka Yokokawa was the furthest away but was still hit with 3,000 mSv.
Even though Yokokawa survived, Shinohara also passed away from multiple organ failure in 2000. With both Yokokawa and Ouchi being forced to endure months of pain before their eventual demises, the case of the 'radioactive man' is worse than we first thought.
The Tokaimura Nuclear Power Plant continued to operate under a different company until it was automatically shut down during the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami - remaining closed ever since.