"Life As I Knew It Was Gone"

On Friday, March 11 of 2011 a span of six minutes changed the course of life in Japan. A massive 9.0 earthquake shook the globe and resulted in a devastating tsunami. 10,583 aftershocks were still being felt almost three years after the disastrous quake, while life hasn't been fully restored. Buildings crumbled despite Japan's modern infrastructure of allowing buildings to withstand earthquakes. The tsunami waves rushed through eastern Japan creating landslides, flooding, building and infrastructure damage, and most toxic of all, the nuclear damages. 

The main site of the nuclear accidents were the Fukushima power plants. Japan declared a state of emergency following the failure of the cooling system at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, resulting in the evacuation of nearby cities. Officials reported that radiation levels inside the plant were up to 1,000 times the normal levels, and that radiation levels outside the plant were up to 8 times the normal levels. Later, a state of emergency was also declared at the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Power Plant about seven miles south. It was reported that radioactive iodine was detected in the tap water in Fukushima, Tchigi, Gunma, Tokyo, Chiba, Saitama, and Niigata, and radioactive cesium, iodine, and strontium were also detected in the soil in some places in Fukushima.

The tsunami wave disrupted many lives of the Japanese. Buildings were destroyed, homes were leveled, and agriculture fields were depleted. There was no warning for this huge wave. Families sought refuge on roofs of tall building, but often it wasn't enough. When running to the safety zones many people were caught in the wave and swept away. Thousands were killed, injured, or reported missing. Some were trapped in cars or hidden beneath the water. In my travels to Japan I spoke to an elderly (around 90 years old) woman who lived in the demolished Fukushima prefecture. Tears streamed from her eyes as she explained to us that she was told that the place where she lived could not be entered for another 20 years. This meant, she told us, "I will not be able to go back to the place where I lived until I am 110..." She then broke down, crying, because after she was told that she realized that she would never be able to enter the house that she had made a living in again. 

"Life as I knew it was gone..."