An evacuation order was lifted on Thursday for certain places within the "difficult-to-return" zone in a town near the disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

The order was lifted for an area in Tomioka Town that was designated as a special zone for reconstruction where decontamination work was carried out on a priority basis.

The central government designated areas where a comparatively large number of people lived before the March 2011 nuclear accident as special reconstruction zones in six municipalities.

With Thursday's lifting, all evacuation orders have now been lifted in the special zones.

The places where the order was finally lifted include a cemetery, community hall and some key roads in the Oragahama and Fukaya districts in the town.

At 9 a.m., police vehicles and local volunteer firefighters entered to patrol the area as barricades were removed from the road.

However, residential areas are not included in the places where the order was lifted, because more decontamination work is needed before residents can return safely.

Tomioka Town Mayor Yamamoto Ikuo says this is a major step toward the lifting of evacuation orders for the community. He said the town will continue to push forward with decontamination work in line with the wishes of the residents.

Evacuation orders still remain for more than 309 square kilometers of land designated as difficult-to-return zones in seven municipalities in the prefecture.