Coastal Area In Tohoku Still Needs Lots & Lots Of Help Part 3: A Town That Was Just Swept Away

I just got back from my third trip to disaster-struck areas in Miyagi prefecture. I saw amazing efforts to clean up the huge amount of debris. I saw green fields, some farmed, some just filled with strong weed, with potential. Most of Minami Sanriku is still a mess. There is no re-building in the hard-hit towns, and perhaps it will be impossible. There are new gasoline stands, with very friendly staff, the first signs of civilisation. Huge respect. We had run out of petrol on our long drive from Hanno, Saitama and were delighted that the stuff was available.

The people in Miyagi have ambition. This is such a beautiful area with so much to gain from investments and help. It is like remote coastal Oregon or Washington state, or Scotland or even more to the point, Yorkshire & the Humber. But, what can you do? It has to be said, if you just lost half of your family, or all of them, the thought of "rebuilding" is remote or not even there. March 11 not only killed some 30,000 people but made more than 120,000 people homeless in a part of Japan that consider "home" and "family" as crucial. Another half a million or maybe 1.2 are still wondering how to get on with it, about 1% of Japan.

Except for the gasoline stand, nothing works in Minami Sanriku. There is no Post Office, no City Hall, everything is in temporary baracks in new locations. There are no places to go to if you have a tooth ache, no medical doctors. The wrecked drugstore where I took photographs in June is now completely demolished. It is a town that was just swept away.

Update: This is a really good article in The Japan Times about Minami Sanriku
Devastated towns stuck in limbo

More about Minami Sanriku:
Coastal Area In Tohoku Still Needs Lots & Lots Of Help Part 2
AKB48 (And Me) In Minami Sanriku, Miyagi Prefecture
Israelis, Please Consider Helping Minami Sanriku Town: Listen To The Voice Of Endo Miki
Coastal Area In Tohoku Still Needs Lots & Lots Of Help Part 1

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