Once again life is interrupted by events out of our control. At 4:10 pm local time, Japan was once again hit with a massive earthquake. The first alert flashed on a screen showing a relatively small area on the west coast of Japan affected and stated that there was no danger of tsunami. A short time later another alert indicated a much wider area stretching further along the coast and far into central Japan. As we were reading this, all the phones near me near Tokyo began sounding their earthquake alerts a then we felt it. Mild where we are but devastating for those nearer the epicenter. After the later, bigger shocks, and immediate evacuation of the coast was ordered as tsunami as high as 3-5 meters are expected.
New Years in Japan is much like Chrisitmas in the US and Europe; people travel to be with family and visit shrines and temples. I hope and pray that none of my readers are directly involved with this unfolding disaster nor that they have family or friends who are. Given that such a large portion of the country is, I fear this is a false hope. Those who are dealing with this, you are in my prayers.
From the tv we can see that at least one town has lost power. Expect this to be the case for much of the area and more so after the big tsunami hit, if they do. Reports from people we know in Toyama City tell us of damage, many strong aftershocks, and difficulty with contacting family and friends in the area. I was here for the big quake around 13 years ago and all communications were out for most of the day of the quake and iffy for a time afterwards.
If people recall the one we had on our side of the island, the death toll from waves should be far less than 13 years ago. Let’s hope so.
Very sorry to hear this news from Japan. The videos we have seen are unnerving.