When clouds of radiation began streaming into the air around the Fukushima nuclear plant, 160,000 residents were told to simply cut ties and run.

Yet, it seems only 159,998 residents heeded the warning. The other two—Naoto Matsumura and Sakae Kato—remained. Their love of animals cracked through their innate sense of self-preservation and they decided to give up everything rather than consigning other beings to starvation.

Living within the 12.5-mile exclusion zone around the damaged reactor, the two men, unrelated to one another, both live alone while taking care of dozens of stray animals that were left behind when the evacuation order was given.

Reports from Reuters and DW state that 57-year-old Kato currently has 41 cats who live with him in his home in the mountains—along with a stray dog he adopted named Pochi. Kato says he will stay with his cats and ensure they are comfortable all through their lives.

Kato's generosity isn't restricted to his domesticated animals. He has taken to feeding local wild boars, considered pests by the government.

Naoto Matsumura left the city at first, but returned shortly after to retrieve his own animals. Once he arrived, the now 55-year-old realized that everyone else's pets and livestock were still there, so he began taking care of a broad community of animals including pigs, cats, dogs, ponies, ostriches, and cows.

When he first evacuated, some of his family outside of the exclusion zone told him he couldn't stay with them due to the risk of contamination. The refugee camps outside the area were quickly filling up, and Matsumura felt like everything out there was too much of a hassle.

WS reported in 2015 that he went back inside the exclusion zone and realized local dogs had not eaten in several days. After it became clear no-one was coming back to the neighborhood, he went around unchaining dogs from trees, letting cows out of their barns, and feeding anything in need, earning him the moniker the ‘Guardian of Fukushima's Animals'.

According to scientists from JAXA, the Japanese national space agency, Matsumura is also the "champion" on another list—he is the most irradiated man in the country. However, they have advised him it will likely be 30-40 years before radiation begins to wreck his biology, a timeline that would leave him "likely dead by then," anyway.

Until that day, he funds the feeding of animals through local donations and had kept people up to date with news on his blog–posted by using solar power—though he lives without steady electricity or running water.

Everything both Kato and Matsumura are doing is technically illegal, and police have ordered them both to leave the area. Yet they seemingly couldn't be less bothered by the government's demands, and both plan to stay there with their animals, come what may.

(WATCH a local news report… )

These Heroes Deserve Recognition—Share Their Story on Social Media…