Coastal Area In Tohoku Still Needs Lots & Lots Of Help Part 2

I feel so fortunate to be able to do something for the people in Tohoku, north eastern Japan, who have truly gone through hell the past 4 months. My team from Hanno, Saitama with 4 vans plus a small kei-car that we donated to a shelter went up again this weekend, with 10 people and lots and lots of boxes with food, clothes, sandals, summer hats, futons, mosquito coils, books, manga, toys, some furniture (especially boxes are much appreciated for storage) and other stuff.

We started at 1AM and arrived in Minami Sanriku around 8AM, the Tohoku Expressway a very bumpy ride in some parts, and north east of Sendai and Ishinomaki it is rural roads and such beautiful scenery. Much has been done to clear up the debris (particularly by the Self Defense Forces, that have now left the region) and there are lots and lots of cranes and heavy vehicles and trucks removing the rubbish. I also saw some fires with black smoke and that got me very worried about pollution such as PCB, asbestos and other toxins released in the air.



The small villages up in the hills that were not damaged by the tsunami are in dire straits, as their houses are still standing; thus not much help from the official channels. Many of the 130,000 or so people who survived but became homeless are either staying with friends or relatives "up-hill" so to speak, or moving into emergency shelters. But the lottery system for getting into the shelters is not perfect and some people who "win" are reluctant to move into the emergency housing. In other words, it is complicated. Very complicated.

What I worry about is that the 500,000 to 1,000,000 people in the coastal region from Iwate and Miyagi to Fukushima, Tochigi and parts of Ibaraki are more or less forgotten as media is more focused on the nuclear reactors and the radiation issue. Frankly, much more effort should be directed to helping these people rebuild their towns along the coast. Having said that, it was great to visit the large volunteer center in Minami Sanriku, where people from Yokohama brought Indian curry and the walls were covered with "gambare!" messages.

If you have any ideas about how to help, get in touch. Every effort is appreciated. In the car, I heard the local radio station broadcast a message from a child in Europe, who had carefully written a letter, saying if anyone needed a place to staye, please come and visit...

Previously on Kurushii:
Coastal Area In Tohoku Still Needs Lots & Lots Of Help Part 1 (June 13, 2011)