Japan Disaster Relief Donations
Shelter Box
the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Information and Assistance group
It has now been one month since the horrific triple catastrophe of earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis struck Japan. The good news, such as it is, is that the horrific toll of dead and missing, after climbing precipitously for the first two weeks, has largely leveled off. While the death toll has continued to climb, much of that increase has come at the expense of the number of missing. In addition, it seems that at least some of the missing have been found alive and the combined total is actually now less than it was on March 24. Moreover, local government has had long enough to contact most of the shelters and so it seems reasonable to conclude that the official number of missing (calculated only upon report of a family member) will not increase. Of course there are still entire households that were wiped away and we will not know the total toll for some time to come. That allowed, it seems reasonable to conclude that some of the more catastrophic scenarios (including some envisioned by the present writer) will not come to pass and the final death toll may even be under 30,000. While that might not sound like such good news, considering what was feared for a time, it has to be viewed as relatively good news.
The bad news comes in the form of the continuing strong aftershocks plaguing the Tohoku region. These quakes, which would be considered major temblors under normal circumstances, have increased in magnitude in recent days. One that hit just a few days ago was initially estimated at a 7.4, but later downgraded to 7.1. Several injuries and at least four fatalities resulted. Today another major quake of magnitude 7.0 hit the area and has resulted in at least one fatality. So far none of these aftershocks have reached the maximum rating of 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale (a figure that has been recorded only twice, once in the Kobe quake of 1995 and during the recent monster off the coast). Nevertheless, seismologists in Japan warn that such a quake is possible. god only knows what the survivors of March 11 must be thinking now. Some who survived that reported that they were just as terrified when the quake hit three days ago. Both of these quakes caused power outages and one occurred in the dead of night, also triggering a tsunami warning. The result was that many of the refugees were put in a position where they had to abandon their shelter and temporarily seek high ground with almost no light to guide them. Fortunately, for most of those affected, the casualties this time were mostly psychological (though having lived through a much less harrowing ideal, I can attest that that is not something to be dismissed altogether).
While the grim statistics may for the first time be showing some (relatively speaking) good news, the situation in of the living continues to be desperate. NHK reported some time ago that at least 56 patients from hospitals in the affected areas have died due to lack of access to medicine, food and clean water. The most vulnerable are already dying. More will follow if they do not get help. To make matters worse, it seems that, as I feared would happen, the gaman of the survivors, that quality of patient endurance and quiet resolve that won them admirers around the world, already started to reach its limits weeks ago and that some in the affected areas have had reports of looting and worse.
An article in the Japan Times from a couple of weeks back reported that there were already rumors of looting, violence, and perhaps most despicable of all, con artists trying to bilk the survivors of their savings:
Sasaki also points to another problem hindering progress: The city, he says, has heard reports of looting of smashed cars and properties and of fraudsters posing as bank officials offering to help distressed locals "manage their funds and lost credit cards." Ofunato is not alone; around ÃÂ¥40 million was reportedly stolen from a bank in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture.
Meanwhile, Shuichi Kawarada, an official at nearby Ishinomaki, says there have been rumors of lootings, stabbings and even a rape in the city. "It cannot be condoned, but people are desperate and frustrated," he says.
Here it should be noted that these are still rumors and having lived in Japan during both the Kobe earthquake and the brief reign of terror of the teenage serial killer, Azuma Shinichiro, I can attest that rumor-mongering concentrating on certain primal fears requires very little stimulus in Japan. As I have seen no follow-ups on these stories, and in fact have seen a number of stories that suggest the survivors are actually maintaining a rigid attachment to order. In fact, just recently it was reported that people have turned in tens of millions of yen in cash that was found distributed throughout the quake zone. Thus it would appear that if there have been breakdowns in order, they are, for the time being at least, isolated.
Police officer tallies and inventories found items turned in, including cash (Kyodo News)
That allowed, these people are in need of continuing help and any little bit you can spare will certainly help.
Japan Disaster Relief Donations
Shelter Box
the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Information and Assistance group
Finally, for anyone who read my diary yesterday, I would like to offer the following inspiring photo:
Fuck you, Ishihara Shitaro! (Photo by Thong Van for Japan Today)