Witness describes Japanese earthquake, aftermath

Waking up Friday, March 11, and seeing a CNN breaking news alert on my iPod Touch about an 8.9 magnitude earthquake (later made a 9.0) hitting Japan, my first thought was for the safety of my best friend, Alex Roberts, a former Oshkosh resident who has been living in Japan since 1997.


Initial reports suggested low death tolls, mainly because most buildings in the country were constructed in such a way to withstand major earthquakes. But as hours passed the death toll, mainly from the tsunami that resulted from the earthquake, grew, including reports of about 9,500 people missing from an entire town.

Worried, I left a message on Friday evening with Alex’s mother, still living in Oshkosh, to call me when she heard from Alex. My worry turned to fear when I hadn’t heard back from her by Sunday.

She didn’t call me back for a good reason, though, as I learned Monday when Alex himself left a message on my phone saying he was alright, and so was his mother, who for the first time in the nearly 14 years he’s lived there, was visiting him in Japan.

Alex and I spoke on Tuesday morning for 20 minutes. He told me about the earthquake itself and the aftermath of its destruction.

He lives in Chiba, which is east of Tokyo, and like Tokyo, it was badly shaken but stood up fairly well, mainly due to some of the best earthquake-proof buildings on the planet.

Alex said he and his mother had just purchased tickets to see a movie when it started.

“When it started, it seemed like a typical quake, which are quite common in Japan,” he said. “But then it kept going, for several minutes. People never panicked, though, and just braced themselves the best they could.”

Following the earthquake, he said he remembers most the sound of car alarms, which were blaring all around him. Again, though, people did not run around panicking, as could be expected in many other places, including probably America.

Now, four days later, life is anything but normal, he said. “The perishables, including bread and meat, are not available in any of the stores, and toilet paper is gone everywhere,” he said. “Rolling blackouts were supposed to begin last night, but they haven’t started yet.”

Alex said the typically busy shopping culture of Japan has completely disappeared, as people are quietly walking around and most stores are closed. Cracked sidewalks and roads have made travel especially difficult.

The biggest worry right now, he said, is from the potential threat of radiation exposure from some of the nuclear reactors that are melting down. “It’s difficult knowing what to do about that,” said Alex. “Other than to friends’ places in Tokyo, I wouldn’t know where to go if my city was evacuated. Chances are they would be evacuated, too.” He said it’s upsetting watching news reports that indicate Japanese government officials have been slow in revealing the true information about the threat.

Alex said the difficulties people in his area are facing because of the earthquake pale in comparison to the devastation the people north of him have experienced because of it and the tsunami. “This country will be forever changed,” he said.

An English teacher in Japan, as well as a professional kickboxer, Alex said he’s tried looking for ways he can help with relief efforts by volunteering to act as a translator, since he speaks both Japanese and English fluently. He wasn’t successful in his first attempt, but plans to keep trying.

People who also wish to help with relief efforts can do so by donating money to the Red Cross online at redcross.org.