Following the lead of their U.S. counterparts, Canadian officials are now warning against travelling within 80 kilometres of Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant - an evacuation zone four times the size of the one established by Japanese authorities.
The move Wednesday evening by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade was the latest indication of a split in opinion between officials in North America and those in Japan, who have ordered the evacuation of a 20-kilometre radius around the plant and instructed those within 30 kilometres to keep windows and doors closed.
The head of the U.S.'s nuclear regulatory authority has said there is no water in the compromised reactor, increasing the chances of a meltdown, an assessment Japanese officials have rejected.
In the travel warning, DFAIT said there is no risk to anyone between 80 and 20 kilometres of the plant, but advises them to evacuate anyway as a precaution, "given the evolving situation."
Tokyo is roughly 250 kilometres to the south, far outside either evacuation zone.
Adrian Morrow