As William Pesek makes very clear in his Aug. 14/15 article “Fukushima replaces economy as Abe’s legacy issue,” it is truly mind-boggling that Japan’s most senior leaders don’t seem to be able to acknowledge the worst crisis in their nation’s history since the atomic bomb fell on Hiroshima. This is no time for economic miracles … Read more
It has been two years since Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako last visited Iwate Prefecture in Tohoku Region. The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, also called the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake, after the region that suffered the disaster. The royal couple was back on Tuesday to visit hard-hit areas and the victims of the … Read more
BRITISH company Campey Turfcare Systems has supplied machines to assist in the decontamination of grass and soil in and around 53 Japanese cities affected by the devastated Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The Koro Field Top Maker (FTM) from global machinery distributor Campeys, based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, and has been approved by the Japanese Ministry … Read more
TOKYO — The operator of Japan’s tsunami-crippled nuclear power plant said Tuesday that about 300 tons of highly radioactive water have leaked from one of the hundreds of storage tanks there — its worst leak yet from such a vessel. Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the contaminated water leaked from a steel storage tank at … Read more
Flowers are left by a stranded fishing boat, which has become a symbol of the devastation of the 2011 tsunami in the city of Kesennuma. The boat is being torn down. (AP Photo/Azusa Uchikura) In March 2011, the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami plunged the nation of Japan into its worst crisis since World War II. … Read more
Successive governments since independence have failed to put in place effective disaster management and preparedness mechanism to counter and control disasters. Instead the government has become more reactionary than pro-active. The recent fire incident at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport would have been averted if the airport management had put in place effective and efficient mechanism … Read more
Jiji Press Outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos sent a reassuring message this week, using the Japanese word “ganbatte” to encourage residents of the Tohoku region devastated by the 2011 disaster. “The most difficult period [in Japan] is without doubt after March 11, 2011, to witness the enormity of the tragedy that struck Japan,” … Read more
As of last month, around 300 tons of contaminated water is pouring into the ocean per day from the Fukushima nuclear reactor in Japan. In March 2011, following the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, a series of equipment failures and nuclear meltdowns caused the nuclear plant at Fukushima to release large amounts of radioactive material. It … Read more
On a Saturday evening in late July, Wine Aid for East Japan began, appropriately, with a toast. Now in its third year, the event, organized by professionals in the wine industry to raise money for charities in the Tohoku region, featured over 100 premium wines and a buffet showcasing ingredients from northeastern Japan. The opening … Read more
A girl takes photograph during the Tanabata festival at the Hatamono shrine in Osaka, Japan. A new study shows there was a spike in the birth of girls in Japan after the 2011 earthquake. A number of studies already claim that large-scale disasters lead to more babies. Now, it looks like girls outnumber boys in those … Read more