Earthquake in japan

[sketchley]

Helpful websites, phone numbers: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110314b2.html

[taksraven]

I think that this wins the "biggest object in the wrong place" competition so far.....

And I'm not trying to be a heartless bastard. Death toll estimates of over 10,000 sound conservative. Just look at the images. So many people lost.

[aldebabram21]

The place where I live has no more gasoline, anywhere, theres is no food in the convini and my bike is out of gas, my family told me they would by a ticket for me to go back home but, my gf is here and stuff I dont know if i can leave, guys be safe out there.

[Zentrandude]

Why? He wasn't the one who made the current policies (they were most recently revised after the Tokaimura JCO Criticality Accident), and a large part of the response (especially the oft confusing announcements and general dearth of information) is due to TEPCO.

The Yokosuka based CVN-73 (George Washington) has been sent up the coast to help, and the CVN-76 (Ronald Reagan) was redirected from exercises off the Korean peninsula to the Tohoku region.

I don't believe we can do much as my ship is still in Maintenance mode since Winter cruise ended but we can if we have to (Man power wise minus normal required personal to keep the ship operational. Its mainly USS Ronald Reagan to pick up the slack till we are fully ready.

[Ghadrack]

I hate the feeling of helplessness watching all this stuff on TV and not being able to do anything other than send money. I guess it's part of the double edged sword of the information age, but seeing these live reports and having had the priviledge of travelling to Japan makes it seem so close, I wish I could go after work and on the weekends and volunteer to help somehow.

My best wishes are with everyone, their families and friends affected. I hope that aide in the form of food, water and shelter can be provided for all of the survivors quickly. I can see from the news reports that the sense of community and order has already greatly benefited the Japanese people, I hope that they are spared the desperation of starvation/dehydration during the rescue efforts.

Since a great deal of the tsunami damage appears to have been done in coastal areas, has the country's internal infrastructure been spared earthquake damage enough to allow for transport trucks to bring in supplies and bring out survivors?

Watching the news and hearing all of the constant aftershock and tsunami warnings, I wonder if there are plans to start transporting survivors inland to shelters away from the coast to allow them some measure of peace from the recurring Tsunami sirens? Then again, the scale of this is so big, I guess that would be asking for the impossible, moving hundreds of thousands of displaced people even a few miles may be a monumental task.

This just sucks

[protostar8]

If his parcel left Japan already, I won't worry. If the package is still in Japan....then he probably won't get it for a while longer.

Wow, that's nuts. I guess his desk will be Revoltechless for awhile if it hadn't left Japan. It was his first overseas order too. But my goodness, this event is just tragic. I earnestly hope that nothing else bad befalls the country and that they can get that reactor under control!

[captain america]

I'm utterly speechless at the level of devastation :o

Let's hope that the aftershocks don't make things any worse than they already are; these poor people have been though enough as it is

[Snail00]

I think that this wins the "biggest object in the wrong place" competition so far.....

And I'm not trying to be a heartless bastard. Death toll estimates of over 10,000 sound conservative. Just look at the images. So many people lost.

WOW

The day after the quake I sent an email to HLJ, the logo freaks (having a back and forth with Scott over logos on boxes costing me an arm and leg)asking them if they were ok and offering my best wishes to their safety and offering support. In the response email I cant believe how quick they are to get back into business and they confirmed a dented box sale coming shortly

here is the email they sent me

"Hello everyone We apologize for this mass email. The outpouring of support and well-wishes from many of you has really brightened our day, but it has also overloaded our mail box. We'd like to answer each of you individually, but we just don't have time. We do thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts. Everyone here is fine, as are our families. For those who have offered help, again, thank you. There is really nothing to be done here, but if you would like to contribute to help the people up in Miyagi, where the worst damage is, there should be a number of sites up by now that can get your contribution where it will help the most. For anyone who did write in with a problem or question, please read the following information carefully, and please write back if that information does not solve your problem. We worked over the weekend to get the shelves back in order, and we will be conducting business as usual, although there may be unavoidable delays. Until at least the end of April, Tokyo Electric will be implementing rolling blackouts. This means that our power will be off for about 4 hours a day, although we don't know for sure exactly when yet. During these times, the site will be unavailable, but as soon as the power comes back on, you'll be able to order as usual. We will be processing orders and payments as usual, and packing and shipping them as usual. There may be delays in shipping, but the major airports that handle our packages are generally up and running, and although it may take a little longer for packages to get out of Japan, they'll be moving pretty much as usual. If you are worried about your order, please don't ask us to hold it until everything gets back to normal. This won't be possible. Again, all indications are that Japan Post will be doing its usual excellent job of getting packages where they are supposed to go. Again, to everyone who offered support, we thank you sincerely. Thank you for shopping with HobbyLink Japan! --- Jon Parker HLJ Customer Service www.hlj.com"

and some pics of their offices

and check out the video Holly crap that is very scary, the other videos i saw weren't shaking that much. It could be also the video taker could not steady the cam. Funny the shelves did not fall over but the kits did which should be fairly intact. Toybox pics posted earlier had more impact but that looked like a private collection gone wild. When I saw the pics I thought of the show "hoarders" came to mind. In my local paper story is that Reactors are failing and meltdown is imminent. poo when it rains it pours. My friends local church is setting up something today and I will drop by to see what I can do or donate. I'm pretty sure the Japanese are prepared for these disasters but support can never be enough in my opinion.

Edited March 14, 2011 by Snail00

[yui1107]

I worry　about my handicapped husband and young only daughter ,more my aged parents in oversea island Okinawa / Ryukyu ,resemble to United states' oversea state "Hawaii", their life is depend on my income Tokyo entirely now.

They will be troubled with life if I'm gone because of aftershock.

Koshigaya city in Saitama pref. is safe now...

Google map to Koshigaya City Main street (English)

Live Earthquake at Koshigaya Lake-town

powered by Aeon Co., Ltd . in March 11 (Fri.) in A.D.2011.

My comments; 37 inch-size Televison system fell down to my bed at the dormitory room of the company. I would become a serious injury or the funeral when not avoided. sigh...but now I safe.

In our area, electricity is cut off from today of 15th.

Daily cut off schedule is ; the first is a.m 9：20 to 13：00, and more, the second is 18:20 to 22：00.

Google map to Koshigaya Lake-Town.

The image is

1. Kosigaya station

2. Heiwa-bashi(peace bridge)in Koshigaya city

3. Koshigaya-City buildig in the view of Moto-arakawa river.

Edited March 14, 2011 by yui1107

[big F]

Watching the HLJ video and Scots account of i really brings it home to you. In the few quakes I've experienced while in Japan the longest went for about 20-30 seconds, and was only 5.6.

Three minutes is just unbelievable, watching the video brings it home, the power of these things.

According to a guy I work with Japan technically moved 10 feet on the planets surface, all the energy involved in that is.. well unimaginable.

All the energy and related stuff that mankind has used since we first learnt to make fire and bang rocks together as a species wouldn't even add up to a couple of seconds of the Sendai quake.

Edited March 14, 2011 by big F

[Snail00]

I am amazed people are just walking around and not running. I mean you see a wall of water coming at you... you haul ass!

I hope those people got to cover to the building where the guy was filming from. Another story that perplexed me in the Toronto Star was a mother and her baby drowned saving her elderly mother. In that situation I would quickly make the decision to save my child first and I KNOW my parents would have no issue with that. Very upsetting when I hear that stuff. To put things into perspective in August Toronto had a 5.0 quake. I was actually on the toilet and the building i was working in was going through renovations and I thought the guys were working on the plumbing and pulling the pipes. The 30-60 second quake made me feel dizzy. Just shows I had false elusions of safety and didnt know we have a fault line running through chaulk river Nuclear plant

Edited March 14, 2011 by Snail00

[Chronocidal]

That song got tears down my cheeks and I'm not afraid to admit it.

Singing to the people in times of crisis. THAT is an artist.

Hearing this, I couldn't help thinking of the scene with Sheryl singing in that bunker near the end of Frontier. Diamond Crevasse has always gotten to me already, but thinking of that scene in the current context is probably going to change how I watch that episode permanently.

[SilentCrossHairs]

Third explosion at the Fukushima nuclear plant in reactor #2. Looking at BBC now.

[Oihan]

Pardon my ignorance, but if I were to donate...which organization(s) should I donate to that would have an immediate impact with regards to relief/aid? The Red Cross...Salvation Army? I've heard and read about donation scams and I'd hate for my donation not to make it to those in Japan.

Edited March 14, 2011 by Oihan

[SilentCrossHairs]

Pardon my ignorance, but if I were to donate...which organization(s) should I donate to that would have an immediate impact with regards to relief/aid? The Red Cross...Salvation Army? I've heard and read about donation scams and I'd hate for my donation not to make it to those in Japan.

Red Cross is your best bet. SInce they have a Red Cross in Japan as well.

[azrael]

Salvation Army USA

International Red Cross

[Vifam7]

Pardon my ignorance, but if I were to donate...which organization(s) should I donate to that would have an immediate impact with regards to relief/aid? The Red Cross...Salvation Army? I've heard and read about donation scams and I'd hate for my donation not to make it to those in Japan.

Just go to google.com and there's a link that allows one to donate to the Japanese Red Cross.

I donated.

Let's all try to help.

[KiriK]

Pardon my ignorance, but if I were to donate...which organization(s) should I donate to that would have an immediate impact with regards to relief/aid? The Red Cross...Salvation Army? I've heard and read about donation scams and I'd hate for my donation not to make it to those in Japan.

The Red Cross and Salvation Army are 2 of the most recognized and trusted organizations you can donate your money to. I work for the American Red Cross Los Angeles Region and can share a little bit about how your donation works during international crisis.

The local Red Cross for that county mobilizes immediately to respond to the disaster. The local Red Cross can request assistance through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies where they put out a call to all 186 societies to provide aid in 3 ways.

1. Sending specialized trained delegates to respond to the disaster

2. Mobilize goods from warehouses around the world

3. Direct financial contribution to local Red Cross for their relief efforts to purchase local goods, and mobilize local volunteers for disaster relief

All Red Cross donations follow 'donor intent' so if you donate specifically for the Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund, 100% of it will go towards that relief effort.

You can find more info on www.redcross.org.

[Oihan]

Thanks everyone!

[ron5864]

Thanks Kirik for the Red Cross info. I just made a donation.

Hopefully, everyone can do a little part to help out.

[Ghost Train]

Agreed with the above posters that Red Cross is a safe bet if you're afraid of scammers. I put in my humble donation.

[Macross_Fanboy]

Well shipping/postal services still work, today my wife received my order from HLJ and the boxes(MM VF-22s) are not crushed or anything. Other than that, the rest of Japan is in shambles still, she went to the Tokyu store and there is absolutely nothing there. Also, 17 helo aircrew were irradiated, they said it's not harmful, but I'm sure that's just the press release to keep people at bay.

[sketchley]

Other than that, the rest of Japan is in shambles still,

Correction: only the Tohoku region is in shambles, with areas next to it partially to majorly disrupted. Other parts of Japan (ie Kansai, Chugoku, Kyushu, etc.), are physically unaffected. It's unclear what the food shortages et al in the most affected regions will have on the unaffected parts right now.

According to a guy I work with Japan technically moved 10 feet on the planets surface, all the energy involved in that is.. well unimaginable.

Correction:

Japan's coastline may have shifted by as much as 4m (13ft) to the east following Friday's 8.9 Magnitude earthquake, according to experts.

(...)

"The Pacific plate has moved a maximum of 20m westwards, but the amount of movement will vary even within the fault," said Dr Musson.

"That doesn't mean the whole country has shifted by that amount because the actual displacement will decay further from the fault."

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12732335

I am amazed people are just walking around and not running. I mean you see a wall of water coming at you... you haul ass!

NHK (or another news program) interviewed an elderly survivor. And he literally said, "the faster you fled the tsunami, the greater your chance of surviving it."

I think those people who weren't running simply weren't aware of the danger they were in until it was too late.

Edited March 15, 2011 by sketchley

[sketchley]

Just saw on the news that in the Tokyo and environs there is a 1,000 MW shortage during peak demand periods. It looks like the rolling blackouts will be in effect for the immediate future (remember: this is limited to the Tokyo & environs. The Tohoku region is served by a separate utility with a different situation.)

I believe at least 1 MW member indicated that they were planning to travel to Tokyo in the next 2 weeks. I humbly submit that they modify their travel plans to either an area of Japan that's not affected (ie Kansai), or delay their trip. The line-ups to get on the trains before their power is cut are truly mind boggling.

[ron5864]

I had a business trip to go up to Aomori next week. Even though it was not affected like Sendai, I cancelled the hotel up there today. With road closures, limited rail service and electricity service, it is best to stay away for now. That trip has been postponed until this situation settles a bit.

[CrazyMartian]

I talked to one of my former teachers (the one who still lives here) a few minutes ago and she told me she had managed to reach her family an hour before. She was still crying in joy after what was for her the most horrible weekend. I had been in a very bad mood all day, but hearing about her relief really made me feel happy.

Hearing this, I couldn't help thinking of the scene with Sheryl singing in that bunker near the end of Frontier. Diamond Crevasse has always gotten to me already, but thinking of that scene in the current context is probably going to change how I watch that episode permanently.

Yeah. I just watched that one episode again and yep... it did change the way I watched the episode, placing Sheryl as my favorite anime heroine, above Motoko Kusanagi.

[Renato]

Hey all,

I'm out here in the western Tokyo suburbs, and convenience stores and supermarket shelves are empty. There is not much for us in the capital to do but wait it out, conserve energy an supplies (but preferably not overly hoard) and learn to build some kind of routine around the power outages.

It's difficult to say when things will return to normal, though. I didn't get any sleep after that quake last night at 4am. I don't even know how big that was, but it was either on of the bigger aftershocks, or the epicentre was very near Tokyo. I think it was the latter. Plus this nuclear reactor crap just gets from bad to worse every time I turn on the TV.

But I feel selfish guilt when I think about that, because there are people who have nothing left, in a much worse situation. So I think the best thing for people in the capital, like I said, is to remain calm and wait it out. Not that I blame people who are leaving the country at all, that's perfectly sound if it's an option. I admit it did cross my mind.

[jenius]

I don't think it should be considered a bad thing if people want to leave Japan temporarily or cancel trips there. When any place has its infrastructure jolted it shouldn't be considered a bad thing to relieve the infrastructure's need of one more person. Obviously you hope the people come back and the tourism resumes once the infrastructure is healed.

It might be a bad time for a sales pitch but Japan is an absolutely amazing place to visit. Once they're back on their feet I highly recommend people try to get out there. Maybe you can help stimulate the economy with some of your tourism dollars as well as treat yourself to a traveler friendly country that has so much to offer.

[protostar8]

I'm confused, on a Yahoo news story (I know, not the best place for accuracy), a reporter said that imported goods are going to be more expensive b/c the dollar is still falling compared to the Yen. Won't a huge crisis like this one that is crippling their economy cause the Yen to fall in value as their economy suffers???

[Renato]

Japan and its people has treated me very well over the years despite some annoying bureaucracy things which you just have to deal with. I think once this is over, society will be wiser and stronger than before.

One thing that I forgot was to express my sincere awe and gratitude to the guys in the plant making the ultimate sacrifices for the safety of us all.

[jenius]

I'm confused, on a Yahoo news story (I know, not the best place for accuracy), a reporter said that imported goods are going to be more expensive b/c the dollar is still falling compared to the Yen. Won't a huge crisis like this one that is crippling their economy cause the Yen to fall in value as their economy suffers???

My macroeconomic theory is a bit rusty but I think the idea is that the banks aren't selling Yen to foreign governments right now, they're instead distributing it to Japanese businesses in an effort to give the economy a life line. They made the Yen very cheap domestically which reduces the supply and strengthens it. That should be a short-term situation though... if the money is spent it will go back into the banks which will bring supply back around. Then if the economy is slow foreign investors won't sink as much money into the Yen and you'll start to see the Yen weaken. Of course, Japan thrives off exports so a weaker Yen then helps the economy a lot, the economy heats back up, governments invest in the Yen, the Yen strengthens, exports cool... and on and on.

[TehPW]

Pardon my ignorance, but if I were to donate...which organization(s) should I donate to that would have an immediate impact with regards to relief/aid? The Red Cross...Salvation Army? I've heard and read about donation scams and I'd hate for my donation not to make it to those in Japan.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/03/14/134532391/crisis-in-japan-heres-how-to-help

the biggest screw up you could do is get scammed. so be very careful of who you give to, donation wise.

[SilentCrossHairs]

Even though it was offline, the fire at the fourth reactor was believed to be the source of the elevated radiation.

"It is likely that the level of radiation increased sharply due to a fire at Unit 4," Edano said. "Now we are talking about levels that can damage human health. These are readings taken near the area where we believe the releases are happening. Far away, the levels should be lower."

On that note I'm going to bed.

[David Hingtgen]

All Red Cross donations follow 'donor intent' so if you donate specifically for the Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund, 100% of it will go towards that relief effort.

Is that recent? I can't remember which group or which disaster, but a couple of years ago I recall a big stink about when people donating for a disaster learned that the funds weren't "specific" and were going to be used in a "general fund".

[Peabody]

Call ME heartless and you are welcome to do whatever you want with your money but I won`t be donating to this appeal. There`s just something off about it seeing as Japann is a rich country but their public generally do not give to charity of any kind themselves. I mean theres something I just don`t like about the Japanese students at my local university asking for donations now but a month ago when Australia had its biggest floods in half a century and thousands were made homeless they didn`t give a fvck. I know the Australian floods were nothing like this scale but still a lot of Australians gave but Japanese culturally do not give money to charity. They seem happy to ask for it though? Just doesn`t sit right with me is all..

Now giving to a country that gives like the US, or a dirt poor country that has nothing to start with, that I can get behind.

Edited March 15, 2011 by Peabody