Friday, March 18, 2011
One week after the earthquake & tsunami that happened to Japan
It's Touching that the Evacuees at shelters forming strong bonds amid adversity
SENDAI — A rice ball and a quarter of a sausage is a typical meal for an evacuee staying at a shelter in the aftermath of Friday’s devastating earthquake and ensuing tsunami that flattened a countless number of homes in northeastern Japan.
With their houses destroyed or damaged, residents who escaped the catastrophe say they still lack water, food and medicine, and gasoline is in short supply in Miyagi Prefecture.
The arrival of emergency food for residents hoping that the worst is over is being hampered by the severity of the disaster, leaving them with only small rations of rice, bananas, bread and rice balls.
‘‘We had a series of earthquakes like the Great Hanshin earthquake and measures should’ve been taken about how to distribute food,’’ said 55-year-old Yoshinobu Ishikawa, who is staying alone at a shelter in Natori in the prefecture.
With temperatures close to zero, however, people attempted to cheer each other up. People waited patiently in long lines for their ration of water, supplied by water tanks, with very few complaints.
In Fukushima Prefecture, the nuclear crisis at a power plant, which was crippled by the mega earthquake, has added to residents’ worries.
Many of the people in devastated areas have not been able to contact their families, friends and co-workers as they cannot use mobiles phones due to a lack of electricity.
In many shelters, notes posted on walls are the only means to search for loved ones. But they are also being used to keep spirits up.
Among the notes listing the names and whereabouts of evacuees, some had messages reading, ‘‘Thank you for helping us’’ and ‘‘Let’s make it through together.’‘
The coast of Miyatojima Island in Miyagi Prefecture was devastated by the tsunami, with residents left isolated by the collapse of a bridge linking the island to the mainland. Rescue workers have been attempting to remove debris at various locations in the prefecture but their work has not been easy.
‘‘I have friends, relatives and co-workers but haven’t heard from them,’’ said Yoshihisa Watanabe, a 55-year-old man who came searching for clues on the opposite shore of the island where houses were flattened.
‘‘I think they always had a sense of urgency because of the way the island is located. So I’m hoping that they moved to higher ground,’’ said Watanabe, who came by car.
At an elementary school in the nearby city of Higashimatsushima, which has been turned into a shelter, people were packed into classrooms.
In the hallway, a junior high school student started crying out the minute she saw her friend for the first time since the earthquake. ‘‘You’re alive. I’ve been hoping to hear from you for so long,’’ the tearful girl told her friend.
The situation of the evacuees is tough, with food supplies tight, and communication and information tools constrained. Some shelters do not have televisions and rely on radios for news and other necessary information for living in shelters.
But the evacuees’ shared plight has helped them to build ties and support each other.
‘‘There are various types of people here but we are staying as one,’’ said a 30-year-old woman staying at a shelter in Natori with her husband and two-year-old son.
‘‘I wanted information so much, but the more information I get through the media, the more I become worried as I see what has actually happened in various places. It’s terrifying,’’ said the woman who declined to give her name.
But seeing other people at the shelter who have also suffered terrible experiences, she realizes she is not alone. ‘‘I know it’s not only about me, it’s about us.’’
With their houses destroyed or damaged, residents who escaped the catastrophe say they still lack water, food and medicine, and gasoline is in short supply in Miyagi Prefecture.
The arrival of emergency food for residents hoping that the worst is over is being hampered by the severity of the disaster, leaving them with only small rations of rice, bananas, bread and rice balls.
‘‘We had a series of earthquakes like the Great Hanshin earthquake and measures should’ve been taken about how to distribute food,’’ said 55-year-old Yoshinobu Ishikawa, who is staying alone at a shelter in Natori in the prefecture.
With temperatures close to zero, however, people attempted to cheer each other up. People waited patiently in long lines for their ration of water, supplied by water tanks, with very few complaints.
In Fukushima Prefecture, the nuclear crisis at a power plant, which was crippled by the mega earthquake, has added to residents’ worries.
Many of the people in devastated areas have not been able to contact their families, friends and co-workers as they cannot use mobiles phones due to a lack of electricity.
In many shelters, notes posted on walls are the only means to search for loved ones. But they are also being used to keep spirits up.
Among the notes listing the names and whereabouts of evacuees, some had messages reading, ‘‘Thank you for helping us’’ and ‘‘Let’s make it through together.’‘
The coast of Miyatojima Island in Miyagi Prefecture was devastated by the tsunami, with residents left isolated by the collapse of a bridge linking the island to the mainland. Rescue workers have been attempting to remove debris at various locations in the prefecture but their work has not been easy.
‘‘I have friends, relatives and co-workers but haven’t heard from them,’’ said Yoshihisa Watanabe, a 55-year-old man who came searching for clues on the opposite shore of the island where houses were flattened.
‘‘I think they always had a sense of urgency because of the way the island is located. So I’m hoping that they moved to higher ground,’’ said Watanabe, who came by car.
At an elementary school in the nearby city of Higashimatsushima, which has been turned into a shelter, people were packed into classrooms.
In the hallway, a junior high school student started crying out the minute she saw her friend for the first time since the earthquake. ‘‘You’re alive. I’ve been hoping to hear from you for so long,’’ the tearful girl told her friend.
The situation of the evacuees is tough, with food supplies tight, and communication and information tools constrained. Some shelters do not have televisions and rely on radios for news and other necessary information for living in shelters.
But the evacuees’ shared plight has helped them to build ties and support each other.
‘‘There are various types of people here but we are staying as one,’’ said a 30-year-old woman staying at a shelter in Natori with her husband and two-year-old son.
‘‘I wanted information so much, but the more information I get through the media, the more I become worried as I see what has actually happened in various places. It’s terrifying,’’ said the woman who declined to give her name.
But seeing other people at the shelter who have also suffered terrible experiences, she realizes she is not alone. ‘‘I know it’s not only about me, it’s about us.’’
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Vast devastation, search for survivors after Japan quake
Prime Minister Naoto Kan said he is sending 50,000 troops for the rescue and recovery efforts following Friday's 8.9-magnitude quake that unleashed one of the greatest disasters Japan has witnessed — a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami that washed far inland over fields, smashing towns, airports and highways in its way.
The official death toll stood at 413, while 784 people were missing and 1,128 injured. In addition, police said between 200 and 300 bodies were found along the coast in Sendai, the biggest city in the area near the quake's epicenter. An untold number of bodies were also believed to be lying in the rubble and debris. Rescue workers had yet to reach the hardest-hit areas.
"Unfortunately, we must be prepared for the number to rise greatly," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told reporters Saturday.
Japanese media quoted local officials as saying the death toll was expected to top 1,000 as authorities tried to reach the hardest-hit areas.
More than 215,000 people were living in 1,350 temporary shelters in five prefectures, or states, the national police agency said. Since the quake, more than 1 million households have not had water, mostly concentrated in northeast.
Kan said a total of 190 military planes and 25 ships have been sent to the area.
"Most of houses along the coastline were washed away, and fire broke out there," he said after inspecting the quake area in a helicopter. "I realized the extremely serious damage the tsunami caused."
Adding to the worries was the damage at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, where two reactors had lost cooling ability.
Aerial scenes of the town of Ofunato showed homes and warehouses in ruins. Sludge and high water spread over acres of land, with people seeking refuge on roofs of partially submerged buildings. At one school, a large white "SOS" had been spelled out in English.
The earthquake that struck off the northeastern shore ranked as the fifth-largest earthquake in the world since 1900 and was nearly 8,000 times stronger than one that devastated Christchurch, New Zealand, last month, scientists said.
Edano said an initial assessment found "enormous damage."
Police said 200-300 bodies were found along the coast in Sendai, the biggest city in the area. Authorities said they weren't able to reach the area because of damage to the roads.
For more than two terrifying, seemingly endless minutes Friday afternoon, the quake shook apart homes and buildings, cracked open highways and unnerved even those who have learned to live with swaying skyscrapers. Then came the devastating tsunami that washed far inland over fields and smashed towns.
The town of Rikuzentakada, population 24,700, in northern Iwate prefecture, looked largely submerged in muddy water, with hardly a trace of houses or buildings of any kind.
The entire Pacific had been put on alert — including coastal areas of South America, Canada and Alaska — but waves there were not as bad as expected.
Residents in Miyagi prefecture, who spent the night on top of a building, were rescued Saturday morning, the Asahi Shimbun newspaper reported.
"I was unable stay on my feet because of the violent shaking," a woman with a baby on her back told television in northern Japan. "The aftershocks gave us no reprieve, then the tsunami came when we tried to run for cover."
In one of the worst-hit residential areas, people buried under rubble could be heard calling out "Help" and "When are we going to be rescued?", the Kyodo news agency reported hours after the quake and tsunami. Rescuers were having a hard time reaching areas due to destroyed roads.
TV footage showed fires engulfing a large waterfront area in northeastern Japan. Houses and other buildings caught fire across large swathes of land in Kesennuma, near Sendai.
Kyodo reported that contact was lost with four trains along the northeast coast.
In one town alone on the northeastern coast, Minami-soma, some 1,800 houses were destroyed or badly ravaged, a Defense Ministry spokeswoman said.
A second, magnitude 6.6 quake struck central Japan along the northwest coast around 4 a.m. local time on Saturday, causing buildings to sway.
Rebuilding Northeast Japan to take Years, Billions
TOKYO — It took only minutes for the earthquake and tsunami to devastate Japan’s northeast. Rebuilding will take years—if it can be afforded.
The relentless wall of water that the quake unleashed killed thousands, swept away whole towns, inundated roads and knocked ports, oil refineries, steel plants and factories out of action.
Experts say the cost of the destruction likely exceeds that of the catastrophic 1995 Kobe earthquake, estimated by Standard & Poor’s to have totaled $159 billion.
The four most severely affected prefectures—Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima and Ibaraki—are home to industries from farming to auto parts to electronics and make up some 6% of Japan’s economy.
The biggest port on the northeast coast, Sendai, has been destroyed. It handled mainly container shipments of exports including rubber and marine products, office machinery, paper goods and auto parts. Three others—Hachinohe, Ishinomaki and Onahama—were severely damaged and will likely be out of commission for months.
Six oil refineries that can turn 1.4 million barrels of oil a day into fuel—a third of Japan’s refining capacity—are shut down, two due to fires.
Steel plants have also been hit.
Nippon Steel Corp’s factory in Kamaishi, Iwate Prefecture was shut after the tsunami flooded part of the plant. The facility makes steel and wire rods for vehicle powertrains and chassis. Sumitomo Metal ’ plant in Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture also went dark after the earthquake.
Elsewhere, widespread power shortages from damage to four nuclear plants—an unfolding crisis in itself—have forced many companies to halt production.
Sony Corp has halted output at several factories, including one that makes Blu-Ray discs. Toshiba Corp has done the same. Automakers have stopped making cars nationwide.
Companies are also facing problems shipping components, receiving raw materials and getting workers to facilities that are working, said Dale Ford, an analyst at technology market research firm IHS iSuppli.
The components made by Japan’s hi-tech industry are destined for final assembly in China and other countries. Analysts said there’s enough inventory in the global supply chain to tide over customers up to four weeks and companies such as Apple, Dell and Lenovo will have to switch to backup sources by then to avoid shortages of parts for iPads and computers.
Initial estimates of insurance losses from the disaster range as high as $60 billion.
Reconstruction will be extremely challenging because the damage is so widespread and has likely destroyed power lines and water treatment facilities, said Jun Yang, president of the Hong Kong branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers.
“In my view, it would take five to 10 years to rebuild or repair,” said Yang, who as an associate professor at Hong Kong University, carried out field research in Sichuan, China, after the devastating earthquake there in 2008.
That time frame doesn’t include any radiation contamination from earthquake-crippled nuclear reactors, which could have a “potentially significant effect on the post-earthquake rebuilding,” he said.
“The destruction to ports, power plants and oil refineries in northeast Japan has been extensive,” economists Matt Robinson and Ruth Stroppiana at Moody’s Analytics wrote in a report. “The cleanup will take months, and the rebuilding of key infrastructure will take substantially longer.”
The rebuilding effort is expected to require tens of billions of dollars of public spending that will benefit construction companies but add to the already swollen national debt.
After the 1995 Kobe quake, Japan’s economy was able to rebound relatively quickly because the government hiked public spending by more than 15% in the following 12 months.
This time around, the government can’t afford to spend so freely because it’s already straining under a debt load that is double the size of the economy, said the Moody’s analysts.
Any stimulus package will probably be paid for in later years by austerity measures, they said.
The mammoth recovery effort will likely mean rebuilding entire towns from scratch and it could be several years before significant construction work is even started, said Ken Collis, an Australian standby member with RedR, which coordinates engineering teams for disaster relief efforts.
Collis said that from his experience helping on reconstruction efforts in the Maldives after the 2004 tsunami, the initial planning phase could take up to a year as people who have lost their homes are given temporary shelter and officials decide what exactly is needed and where money is best spent.
Another year could be spent on designing the new roads, bridges, houses and other buildings that need to be rebuilt, while a third year is spent putting contracts out for bidding.
“It could easily take three years before significant reconstruction is done,” Collis said.
He said housing, transport links and factories and other businesses would all have to be rebuilt at the same time.
“It’s very difficult to provide a lot of housing if there are no jobs available or transport to and from,” he said.
Reuben Chu, president of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, contrasted the disaster with the Sichuan quake, saying they each posed different problems.
Rebuilding after the Sichuan quake was technically challenging because much of the destruction was on steep hillsides.
That’s not such a big problem in northeastern Japan. Instead, Chu said, the biggest challenge will be getting enough money, materials and workers.
One of the big problems that planners face at the outset of the rebuilding phase is whether it’s a good idea to rebuild in the same place with the same type of buildings, said Collis.
Many survivors are suffering from psychological trauma, he said. “People would be horrified if they were asked to go back live in same location.”
Status of quake-stricken reactors at Fukushima nuclear power plants
TOKYO — The following is the known status as of Wednesday evening of each of the six reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant and the four reactors at the Fukushima No. 2 plant, both in Fukushima Prefecture, which were crippled by Friday’s magnitude 9.0 earthquake and the ensuing tsunami.
Fukushima No. 1 plant
Fukushima No. 2 plant
Fukushima No. 1 plant
- Reactor No. 1 - Suspended after quake, cooling failure, partial melting of core, vapor vented, building damaged Saturday by hydrogen explosion, seawater being pumped in.
- Reactor No. 2 - Suspended after quake, cooling failure, seawater being pumped in, fuel rods fully exposed temporarily, vapor vented, building housing reactor damaged Monday by blast at reactor No. 3, damage to containment vessel on Tuesday, potential meltdown feared.
- Reactor No. 3 - Suspended after quake, cooling failure, partial melting of core feared, vapor vented, seawater being pumped in, building housing reactor damaged Monday by hydrogen explosion, high-level radiation measured nearby on Tuesday, plume of smoke observed Wednesday, damage to containment vessel likely.
- Reactor No. 4 - Under maintenance when quake struck, fire Tuesday possibly caused by hydrogen explosion at pool holding spent fuel rods, abnormal temperature rise in spent-fuel storage pool but water level not observed, fire observed Wednesday at building housing reactor, no water poured in to cool pool, spraying of boric acid being considered.
- Reactors No. 5, No. 6 - Under maintenance when quake struck, temperatures slightly rising in spent-fuel storage pools.
Fukushima No. 2 plant
- Reactors No. 1, No. 2, No. 4 - Suspended after quake, cooling failure, then cold shutdown.
- Reactor No. 3 - Suspended after quake, cold shutdown.
Over 15,000 dead or missing as search for quake victims picks up
SENDAI — The search for victims of Japan’s massive earthquake has gradually expanded across a wider area, with access improved by the removal of debris left by tsunami, rescue officials said Thursday, the seventh day since the quake.
Meanwhile, fuel shortages have hampered the delivery of relief supplies to shelters where survivors are staying, while also limiting the use of heavy machinery and heating appliances, they said.
The number of those who died or are unaccounted for has exceeded 15,000—more than 5,400 deaths and nearly 9,600 missing, while some 380,000 are still staying in about 2,000 shelters in eight prefectures, the National Police Agency said, based on its noon tally.
Around 2,000 recovered bodies were identified Thursday in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, of which 870 were returned to their families, according to the NPA.
The number of partially or completely destroyed buildings reached 100,396, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Yukihiko Akutsu, parliamentary secretary of the Cabinet Office, said in Miyagi Prefecture he was instructed by Ryu Matsumoto, state minister for disaster management, to focus from Thursday on livelihood support for survivors staying at shelters.
In the severely hit coastal city of Rikuzentakata in Iwate, the development in rubble removal has enabled the Self-Defense Forces to build roads so rescue workers can search for victims across greater areas.
Mayor Futoshi Toba said, ‘‘There were some areas where we could not enter, but now we can go anywhere (in the city) by car.’‘
He added, however, ‘‘We need fuel for heating, activating heavy machines and delivering relief goods to shelters, but we face difficulties.’‘
The prefectural government of Miyagi has almost completed confirming isolated areas from the air, and it will start distributing relief materials to these areas by helicopter, one of its officials said.
Sendai Airport, which was submerged by a tsunami following the quake, reopened part of its runways for use by police and SDF airplanes to transport relief materials. It has not been decided when commercial flights will be resumed.
As another development, express bus lines between Sendai and Morioka as well as Morioka and Aomori were resumed Thursday, connecting all of the six prefectural capitals, including Akita, Yamagata and Fukushima, in the Tohoku region.
In Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, meanwhile, Mayor Hiroshi Kameyama told the municipal task force meeting that the number of missing people in the city of 160,000 will reach around 10,000.
On Thursday, temperatures in the quake-hit areas in northeastern Japan dropped to midwinter levels, marking 5.9 degrees below zero in Morioka, Iwate, 2.7 degrees below zero in Sendai, Miyagi, and 3.5 degrees below zero in the city of Fukushima.
At a shelter in Sendai, all of the 400 survivors staying had received blankets by Wednesday. One 65-year-old woman said, however, that she had woken during the night ‘‘due to the cold.’‘
As temperatures are expected to remain low in these areas through Friday morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency called on residents to take care.
In the heavily damaged coastal city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, meanwhile, elementary as well as junior and senior high schools reopened for the first time since the quake.
At prefecture-run Ofunato High School, around 250 students arrived on foot or by bicycle. First-grader Ayumi Urashima, 16, said, ‘‘On the way to school, I met one of my friends who I had not been able to contact. We hugged each other.’’
Meanwhile, fuel shortages have hampered the delivery of relief supplies to shelters where survivors are staying, while also limiting the use of heavy machinery and heating appliances, they said.
The number of those who died or are unaccounted for has exceeded 15,000—more than 5,400 deaths and nearly 9,600 missing, while some 380,000 are still staying in about 2,000 shelters in eight prefectures, the National Police Agency said, based on its noon tally.
Around 2,000 recovered bodies were identified Thursday in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, of which 870 were returned to their families, according to the NPA.
The number of partially or completely destroyed buildings reached 100,396, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Yukihiko Akutsu, parliamentary secretary of the Cabinet Office, said in Miyagi Prefecture he was instructed by Ryu Matsumoto, state minister for disaster management, to focus from Thursday on livelihood support for survivors staying at shelters.
In the severely hit coastal city of Rikuzentakata in Iwate, the development in rubble removal has enabled the Self-Defense Forces to build roads so rescue workers can search for victims across greater areas.
Mayor Futoshi Toba said, ‘‘There were some areas where we could not enter, but now we can go anywhere (in the city) by car.’‘
He added, however, ‘‘We need fuel for heating, activating heavy machines and delivering relief goods to shelters, but we face difficulties.’‘
The prefectural government of Miyagi has almost completed confirming isolated areas from the air, and it will start distributing relief materials to these areas by helicopter, one of its officials said.
Sendai Airport, which was submerged by a tsunami following the quake, reopened part of its runways for use by police and SDF airplanes to transport relief materials. It has not been decided when commercial flights will be resumed.
As another development, express bus lines between Sendai and Morioka as well as Morioka and Aomori were resumed Thursday, connecting all of the six prefectural capitals, including Akita, Yamagata and Fukushima, in the Tohoku region.
In Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, meanwhile, Mayor Hiroshi Kameyama told the municipal task force meeting that the number of missing people in the city of 160,000 will reach around 10,000.
On Thursday, temperatures in the quake-hit areas in northeastern Japan dropped to midwinter levels, marking 5.9 degrees below zero in Morioka, Iwate, 2.7 degrees below zero in Sendai, Miyagi, and 3.5 degrees below zero in the city of Fukushima.
At a shelter in Sendai, all of the 400 survivors staying had received blankets by Wednesday. One 65-year-old woman said, however, that she had woken during the night ‘‘due to the cold.’‘
As temperatures are expected to remain low in these areas through Friday morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency called on residents to take care.
In the heavily damaged coastal city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, meanwhile, elementary as well as junior and senior high schools reopened for the first time since the quake.
At prefecture-run Ofunato High School, around 250 students arrived on foot or by bicycle. First-grader Ayumi Urashima, 16, said, ‘‘On the way to school, I met one of my friends who I had not been able to contact. We hugged each other.’’
Daybreak Reveals Huge Devastation in Tsunami-hit Japan
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan confronted devastation along its northeastern coast on Saturday, with fires raging and parts of some cities under water after a massive earthquake and tsunami that likely killed at least 1,000 people.
Daybreak was expected to reveal the full extent of the death and damage from Friday's 8.9 magnitude earthquake and the 10-meter high tsunami it sent surging into cities and villages, sweeping away everything in its path.
In one of the worst-hit residential areas, people buried under rubble could be heard calling out "help" and "when are we going to be rescued," Kyodo news agency reported.
The government warned there could be a small radiation leak from a nuclear reactor whose cooling system was knocked out by the quake. Prime Minister Naoto Kan ordered an evacuation zone around the plant be expanded to 10 km (6 miles) from 3 km. Some 3,000 people had earlier been moved out of harm's way.
Underscoring concerns about the Fukushima plant, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo, U.S. officials said Japan had asked for coolant to avert a rise in the temperature of its nuclear rods, but ultimately handled the matter on its own. Officials said a leak was still possible because pressure would have to be released.
The unfolding natural disaster prompted offers of search and rescue help from 45 countries.
China said rescuers were ready to help with quake relief while President Barack Obama told Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan the United States would assist in any way.
"This is likely to be a humanitarian relief operation of epic proportions," Japan expert Sheila Smith of the U.S.-based Council on Foreign Relations wrote in a commentary.
The northeastern Japanese city of Kesennuma, with a population of 74,000, was hit by widespread fires and one-third of the city was under water, Jiji news agency said on Saturday.
The airport in the city of Sendai, home to one million people, was on fire, it added.
TV footage from Friday showed a muddy torrent of water carrying cars and wrecked homes at high speed across farmland near Sendai, 300 km (180 miles) northeast of Tokyo. Ships had been flung onto a harbor wharf, where they lay helplessly on their side.
Boats, cars and trucks were tossed around like toys in the water after a small tsunami hit the town of Kamaichi in northern Japan. Kyodo news agency reported that contact had been lost with four trains in the coastal area.
Japanese politicians pushed for an emergency budget to fund relief efforts after Kan asked them to "save the country," Kyodo news agency reported. Japan is already the most heavily indebted major economy in the world, meaning any funding efforts would be closely scrutinized by financial markets.
Domestic media said the death toll was expected to exceed 1,000, most of whom appeared to have drowned by churning waters.
The extent of the destruction along a lengthy stretch of coastline suggested the death toll could rise significantly.
Even in a nation accustomed to earthquakes, the devastation was shocking.
"A big area of Sendai city near the coast, is flooded. We are hearing that people who were evacuated are stranded," said Rie Sugimoto, a reporter for NHK television in Sendai.
"About 140 people, including children, were rushed to an elementary school and are on the rooftop but they are surrounded by water and have nowhere else to go."
Japan has prided itself on its speedy tsunami warning system, which has been upgraded several times since its inception in 1952, including after a 7.8 magnitude quake triggered a 30-meter high wave before a warning was given.
The country has also built countless breakwaters and floodgates to protect ports and coastal areas, although experts said they might not have been enough to prevent disasters such as the one that struck on Friday.
In Tokyo, many residents who had earlier fled swaying buildings slept in their offices after public transport was shut down. Many subways in Tokyo later resumed operation but trains did not run.
"I was unable stay on my feet because of the violent shaking. The aftershocks gave us no reprieve. Then the tsunamis came when we tried to run for cover. It was the strongest quake I experienced," a woman with a baby on her back told television in northern Japan.
FIRES ACROSS THE COAST
The quake, the most powerful since Japan started keeping records 140 years ago, sparked at least 80 fires in cities and towns along the coast, Kyodo said.
Other Japanese nuclear power plants and oil refineries were shut down and one refinery was ablaze.
Auto plants, electronics factories and refineries shut, roads buckled and power to millions of homes and businesses was knocked out. Several airports, including Tokyo's Narita, were closed and rail services halted. All ports were shut.
The central bank said it would cut short a two-day policy review scheduled for next week to one day on Monday and promised to do its utmost to ensure financial market stability.
The disaster occurred as the world's third-largest economy had been showing signs of reviving from an economic contraction in the final quarter of last year. It raised the prospect of major disruptions for many key businesses and a massive repair bill running into tens of billions of dollars.
The tsunami alerts revived memories of the giant waves that struck Asia in 2004.
Warnings were issued for countries to the west of Japan and across the Pacific as far away as Colombia and Peru, but the tsunami dissipated as it sped across the ocean and worst fears in the Americas were not realised.
The earthquake was the fifth most powerful to hit the world in the past century.
"The building shook for what seemed a long time and many people in the newsroom grabbed their helmets and some got under their desks," Reuters correspondent Linda Sieg said in Tokyo. "It was probably the worst I have felt since I came to Japan more than 20 years ago."
The quake surpasses the Great Kanto quake of September 1, 1923, which had a magnitude of 7.9 and killed more than 140,000 people in the Tokyo area.
The 1995 Kobe quake caused $100 billion in damage and was the most expensive natural disaster in history. Economic damage from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was estimated at about $10 billion.
Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas.
source: Yahoo! News
Daybreak was expected to reveal the full extent of the death and damage from Friday's 8.9 magnitude earthquake and the 10-meter high tsunami it sent surging into cities and villages, sweeping away everything in its path.
In one of the worst-hit residential areas, people buried under rubble could be heard calling out "help" and "when are we going to be rescued," Kyodo news agency reported.
The government warned there could be a small radiation leak from a nuclear reactor whose cooling system was knocked out by the quake. Prime Minister Naoto Kan ordered an evacuation zone around the plant be expanded to 10 km (6 miles) from 3 km. Some 3,000 people had earlier been moved out of harm's way.
Underscoring concerns about the Fukushima plant, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo, U.S. officials said Japan had asked for coolant to avert a rise in the temperature of its nuclear rods, but ultimately handled the matter on its own. Officials said a leak was still possible because pressure would have to be released.
The unfolding natural disaster prompted offers of search and rescue help from 45 countries.
China said rescuers were ready to help with quake relief while President Barack Obama told Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan the United States would assist in any way.
"This is likely to be a humanitarian relief operation of epic proportions," Japan expert Sheila Smith of the U.S.-based Council on Foreign Relations wrote in a commentary.
The northeastern Japanese city of Kesennuma, with a population of 74,000, was hit by widespread fires and one-third of the city was under water, Jiji news agency said on Saturday.
The airport in the city of Sendai, home to one million people, was on fire, it added.
TV footage from Friday showed a muddy torrent of water carrying cars and wrecked homes at high speed across farmland near Sendai, 300 km (180 miles) northeast of Tokyo. Ships had been flung onto a harbor wharf, where they lay helplessly on their side.
Boats, cars and trucks were tossed around like toys in the water after a small tsunami hit the town of Kamaichi in northern Japan. Kyodo news agency reported that contact had been lost with four trains in the coastal area.
Japanese politicians pushed for an emergency budget to fund relief efforts after Kan asked them to "save the country," Kyodo news agency reported. Japan is already the most heavily indebted major economy in the world, meaning any funding efforts would be closely scrutinized by financial markets.
Domestic media said the death toll was expected to exceed 1,000, most of whom appeared to have drowned by churning waters.
The extent of the destruction along a lengthy stretch of coastline suggested the death toll could rise significantly.
Even in a nation accustomed to earthquakes, the devastation was shocking.
"A big area of Sendai city near the coast, is flooded. We are hearing that people who were evacuated are stranded," said Rie Sugimoto, a reporter for NHK television in Sendai.
"About 140 people, including children, were rushed to an elementary school and are on the rooftop but they are surrounded by water and have nowhere else to go."
Japan has prided itself on its speedy tsunami warning system, which has been upgraded several times since its inception in 1952, including after a 7.8 magnitude quake triggered a 30-meter high wave before a warning was given.
The country has also built countless breakwaters and floodgates to protect ports and coastal areas, although experts said they might not have been enough to prevent disasters such as the one that struck on Friday.
In Tokyo, many residents who had earlier fled swaying buildings slept in their offices after public transport was shut down. Many subways in Tokyo later resumed operation but trains did not run.
"I was unable stay on my feet because of the violent shaking. The aftershocks gave us no reprieve. Then the tsunamis came when we tried to run for cover. It was the strongest quake I experienced," a woman with a baby on her back told television in northern Japan.
FIRES ACROSS THE COAST
The quake, the most powerful since Japan started keeping records 140 years ago, sparked at least 80 fires in cities and towns along the coast, Kyodo said.
Other Japanese nuclear power plants and oil refineries were shut down and one refinery was ablaze.
Auto plants, electronics factories and refineries shut, roads buckled and power to millions of homes and businesses was knocked out. Several airports, including Tokyo's Narita, were closed and rail services halted. All ports were shut.
The central bank said it would cut short a two-day policy review scheduled for next week to one day on Monday and promised to do its utmost to ensure financial market stability.
The disaster occurred as the world's third-largest economy had been showing signs of reviving from an economic contraction in the final quarter of last year. It raised the prospect of major disruptions for many key businesses and a massive repair bill running into tens of billions of dollars.
The tsunami alerts revived memories of the giant waves that struck Asia in 2004.
Warnings were issued for countries to the west of Japan and across the Pacific as far away as Colombia and Peru, but the tsunami dissipated as it sped across the ocean and worst fears in the Americas were not realised.
The earthquake was the fifth most powerful to hit the world in the past century.
"The building shook for what seemed a long time and many people in the newsroom grabbed their helmets and some got under their desks," Reuters correspondent Linda Sieg said in Tokyo. "It was probably the worst I have felt since I came to Japan more than 20 years ago."
The quake surpasses the Great Kanto quake of September 1, 1923, which had a magnitude of 7.9 and killed more than 140,000 people in the Tokyo area.
The 1995 Kobe quake caused $100 billion in damage and was the most expensive natural disaster in history. Economic damage from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was estimated at about $10 billion.
Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas.
source: Yahoo! News
People queue outside a supermarket in downtown Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, on Thursday.
Back to this blog...
Well, i haven't posted things to this blog for around 1-2 months already...
While i was away, there seems to be lots of things happening in Japan, and i haven't had time to post about it here yet, so now I'm going to post some of the world shocking news of the incident that happened in Japan in these past few days...
While i was away, there seems to be lots of things happening in Japan, and i haven't had time to post about it here yet, so now I'm going to post some of the world shocking news of the incident that happened in Japan in these past few days...
Friday, January 7, 2011
Morning Musume gets 4 new members
 |
| Morning Musume’s new members, from left: Kanon Suzuki, Erina Ikuta, Riho Sayashi and Mizuki Fukumura stand with group leader Ai Takahashi |
After a grueling selection process, during which around 9,000 girls applied to join the band, the final four were Erina Ikuta, 13, Riho Sayashi, 12, Kanon Suzuki, 12, and Mizuki Fukumura, 14.
In front of 2,000 fans, Ikuta said, “It’s been a long climb to the top and I can’t wait to give it my best,” to which current group leader Ai Takahashi, 24, said: “I’m jealous. We’re an entire generation apart.”
It has not yet been decided when the four new members will begin performing with the band.
New Product Egg Digital Photo frame
Comes in three colors: white, blue and orange. Available online at Rakuten or Yahoo Japan. 1,280 yen.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Forgotten celebrities, villains, victims - 20 years later
Where are they now?
They filled our news columns and our television screens and seemed, for a moment, so important. The moment passes, and what happens to them? What are they up to, these forgotten celebrities, villains and victims, 20 years later? Shukan Shincho (Dec 30 – Jan 6) catches up on 20 of them. Lack of space confines us to two.
Remember the late Sosoke Uno? You’re forgiven if not. He was one of Japan’s least memorable prime ministers. His administration in 1989 lasted all of 69 days. Japan then was at the height of its prosperity, the grim decay in store for it scarcely foreseeable. Memorable prime ministers were a luxury the country didn’t need. Faceless nonentities served the purpose just fine. Uno is worth recalling only for the manner of his downfall, involving as it did a scandalous liaison with a geisha.
The geisha, Mitsuko Nakanishi, is now 61. “Same clear eyes, same full lips – you’d know her at a glance,” says Shukan Shincho. Too bad for her. The notoriety has been persistent, and it doesn’t seem to have done her much good. As for Uno himself – well, other high-ranking politicians have had geisha mistresses, there’s nothing new there, but compared to at least some of them, “Mr Uno,” says Nakanishi, “had absolutely no consideration for a woman.” It was a purely commercial arrangement – 300,000 yen a month in exchange for her availability.
What of Nakanishi since? “Wherever I went, I was stared at. I couldn’t set foot in Tokyo. My parents were dead, I was divorced, I had nothing to do with my son and nowhere to go. An acquaintance introduced me to a temple in Shiga Prefecture, and I joined as an acolyte.”
Even there, she says, the media sniffed her out. Besides, she lacked the religious vocation. Subsequent ups and downs sent her to work at an establishment purveying Buddhist accessories, to hairdressing school, to massage school. She qualified as a masseuse, got married, got divorced. No more marriage for her, she vows – two was enough. And how does she rate the current prime minister? Naoto Kan’s seemingly helpless political shuffling, she says, is “unmanly.” Not much seems to have changed in 20 years.
Our next guest, so to speak, is Nobuyuki Sato, vigorous champion of human rights – his own. His treatment in prison, where he languishes for kidnapping a 9-year-old girl in Niigata in 1989 and confining her nine years and two months, does not please him.
To a journalist who corresponds with him he reportedly wrote, “The feelings of the weak are not worth considering. What else can they do but yield to the strong?”
A quarrelsome prisoner, he has spent 250 days of the past 10 years in a punishment cell, and vigorously protests this “infringement of my human rights.” It never seems to cross his mind, remarks Shukan Shincho, that prison, though harsh, is humane compared to what he put his victim through.
The case was riveting at the time for its sheer horror. The victim, now 30, is “well, thank heaven,” says her grandmother. “She’s attending school. But Sato ruined her life. Even now, when she thinks back on her captivity, it drives her to despair. Memories like that don’t fade easily.”
They filled our news columns and our television screens and seemed, for a moment, so important. The moment passes, and what happens to them? What are they up to, these forgotten celebrities, villains and victims, 20 years later? Shukan Shincho (Dec 30 – Jan 6) catches up on 20 of them. Lack of space confines us to two.
Remember the late Sosoke Uno? You’re forgiven if not. He was one of Japan’s least memorable prime ministers. His administration in 1989 lasted all of 69 days. Japan then was at the height of its prosperity, the grim decay in store for it scarcely foreseeable. Memorable prime ministers were a luxury the country didn’t need. Faceless nonentities served the purpose just fine. Uno is worth recalling only for the manner of his downfall, involving as it did a scandalous liaison with a geisha.
The geisha, Mitsuko Nakanishi, is now 61. “Same clear eyes, same full lips – you’d know her at a glance,” says Shukan Shincho. Too bad for her. The notoriety has been persistent, and it doesn’t seem to have done her much good. As for Uno himself – well, other high-ranking politicians have had geisha mistresses, there’s nothing new there, but compared to at least some of them, “Mr Uno,” says Nakanishi, “had absolutely no consideration for a woman.” It was a purely commercial arrangement – 300,000 yen a month in exchange for her availability.
What of Nakanishi since? “Wherever I went, I was stared at. I couldn’t set foot in Tokyo. My parents were dead, I was divorced, I had nothing to do with my son and nowhere to go. An acquaintance introduced me to a temple in Shiga Prefecture, and I joined as an acolyte.”
Even there, she says, the media sniffed her out. Besides, she lacked the religious vocation. Subsequent ups and downs sent her to work at an establishment purveying Buddhist accessories, to hairdressing school, to massage school. She qualified as a masseuse, got married, got divorced. No more marriage for her, she vows – two was enough. And how does she rate the current prime minister? Naoto Kan’s seemingly helpless political shuffling, she says, is “unmanly.” Not much seems to have changed in 20 years.
Our next guest, so to speak, is Nobuyuki Sato, vigorous champion of human rights – his own. His treatment in prison, where he languishes for kidnapping a 9-year-old girl in Niigata in 1989 and confining her nine years and two months, does not please him.
To a journalist who corresponds with him he reportedly wrote, “The feelings of the weak are not worth considering. What else can they do but yield to the strong?”
A quarrelsome prisoner, he has spent 250 days of the past 10 years in a punishment cell, and vigorously protests this “infringement of my human rights.” It never seems to cross his mind, remarks Shukan Shincho, that prison, though harsh, is humane compared to what he put his victim through.
The case was riveting at the time for its sheer horror. The victim, now 30, is “well, thank heaven,” says her grandmother. “She’s attending school. But Sato ruined her life. Even now, when she thinks back on her captivity, it drives her to despair. Memories like that don’t fade easily.”
Forgotten celebrities, villains, victims - 20 years later
Where are they now?
They filled our news columns and our television screens and seemed, for a moment, so important. The moment passes, and what happens to them? What are they up to, these forgotten celebrities, villains and victims, 20 years later? Shukan Shincho (Dec 30 – Jan 6) catches up on 20 of them. Lack of space confines us to two.
Remember the late Sosoke Uno? You’re forgiven if not. He was one of Japan’s least memorable prime ministers. His administration in 1989 lasted all of 69 days. Japan then was at the height of its prosperity, the grim decay in store for it scarcely foreseeable. Memorable prime ministers were a luxury the country didn’t need. Faceless nonentities served the purpose just fine. Uno is worth recalling only for the manner of his downfall, involving as it did a scandalous liaison with a geisha.
The geisha, Mitsuko Nakanishi, is now 61. “Same clear eyes, same full lips – you’d know her at a glance,” says Shukan Shincho. Too bad for her. The notoriety has been persistent, and it doesn’t seem to have done her much good. As for Uno himself – well, other high-ranking politicians have had geisha mistresses, there’s nothing new there, but compared to at least some of them, “Mr Uno,” says Nakanishi, “had absolutely no consideration for a woman.” It was a purely commercial arrangement – 300,000 yen a month in exchange for her availability.
What of Nakanishi since? “Wherever I went, I was stared at. I couldn’t set foot in Tokyo. My parents were dead, I was divorced, I had nothing to do with my son and nowhere to go. An acquaintance introduced me to a temple in Shiga Prefecture, and I joined as an acolyte.”
Even there, she says, the media sniffed her out. Besides, she lacked the religious vocation. Subsequent ups and downs sent her to work at an establishment purveying Buddhist accessories, to hairdressing school, to massage school. She qualified as a masseuse, got married, got divorced. No more marriage for her, she vows – two was enough. And how does she rate the current prime minister? Naoto Kan’s seemingly helpless political shuffling, she says, is “unmanly.” Not much seems to have changed in 20 years.
Our next guest, so to speak, is Nobuyuki Sato, vigorous champion of human rights – his own. His treatment in prison, where he languishes for kidnapping a 9-year-old girl in Niigata in 1989 and confining her nine years and two months, does not please him.
To a journalist who corresponds with him he reportedly wrote, “The feelings of the weak are not worth considering. What else can they do but yield to the strong?”
A quarrelsome prisoner, he has spent 250 days of the past 10 years in a punishment cell, and vigorously protests this “infringement of my human rights.” It never seems to cross his mind, remarks Shukan Shincho, that prison, though harsh, is humane compared to what he put his victim through.
The case was riveting at the time for its sheer horror. The victim, now 30, is “well, thank heaven,” says her grandmother. “She’s attending school. But Sato ruined her life. Even now, when she thinks back on her captivity, it drives her to despair. Memories like that don’t fade easily.”
They filled our news columns and our television screens and seemed, for a moment, so important. The moment passes, and what happens to them? What are they up to, these forgotten celebrities, villains and victims, 20 years later? Shukan Shincho (Dec 30 – Jan 6) catches up on 20 of them. Lack of space confines us to two.
Remember the late Sosoke Uno? You’re forgiven if not. He was one of Japan’s least memorable prime ministers. His administration in 1989 lasted all of 69 days. Japan then was at the height of its prosperity, the grim decay in store for it scarcely foreseeable. Memorable prime ministers were a luxury the country didn’t need. Faceless nonentities served the purpose just fine. Uno is worth recalling only for the manner of his downfall, involving as it did a scandalous liaison with a geisha.
The geisha, Mitsuko Nakanishi, is now 61. “Same clear eyes, same full lips – you’d know her at a glance,” says Shukan Shincho. Too bad for her. The notoriety has been persistent, and it doesn’t seem to have done her much good. As for Uno himself – well, other high-ranking politicians have had geisha mistresses, there’s nothing new there, but compared to at least some of them, “Mr Uno,” says Nakanishi, “had absolutely no consideration for a woman.” It was a purely commercial arrangement – 300,000 yen a month in exchange for her availability.
What of Nakanishi since? “Wherever I went, I was stared at. I couldn’t set foot in Tokyo. My parents were dead, I was divorced, I had nothing to do with my son and nowhere to go. An acquaintance introduced me to a temple in Shiga Prefecture, and I joined as an acolyte.”
Even there, she says, the media sniffed her out. Besides, she lacked the religious vocation. Subsequent ups and downs sent her to work at an establishment purveying Buddhist accessories, to hairdressing school, to massage school. She qualified as a masseuse, got married, got divorced. No more marriage for her, she vows – two was enough. And how does she rate the current prime minister? Naoto Kan’s seemingly helpless political shuffling, she says, is “unmanly.” Not much seems to have changed in 20 years.
Our next guest, so to speak, is Nobuyuki Sato, vigorous champion of human rights – his own. His treatment in prison, where he languishes for kidnapping a 9-year-old girl in Niigata in 1989 and confining her nine years and two months, does not please him.
To a journalist who corresponds with him he reportedly wrote, “The feelings of the weak are not worth considering. What else can they do but yield to the strong?”
A quarrelsome prisoner, he has spent 250 days of the past 10 years in a punishment cell, and vigorously protests this “infringement of my human rights.” It never seems to cross his mind, remarks Shukan Shincho, that prison, though harsh, is humane compared to what he put his victim through.
The case was riveting at the time for its sheer horror. The victim, now 30, is “well, thank heaven,” says her grandmother. “She’s attending school. But Sato ruined her life. Even now, when she thinks back on her captivity, it drives her to despair. Memories like that don’t fade easily.”
Monday, January 3, 2011
Father, son return safely after night lost in Aomori ski area
AOMORI — A 55-year-old man and his 11-year-old son returned safely Monday morning after spending a night missing at the Mt Hakkoda ski area in Aomori, northeastern Japan, police said.
After deviating from a ski course and getting lost in fog Sunday afternoon, Nobuyuki and Hiroshi Ogawa passed the night without sleep in the freezing cold in a hole at the root of a large tree and were found around 7:45 a.m. by a police searcher, they said.
Although the temperature at the mountaintop was minus 13 on Sunday midnight, they were confirmed free from injury at a hospital where they were taken for checks, the police added.
Searcher Kazuo Sato, 60, found the pair standing near a stream several hundred meters from a ski course. The two then went down the mountain on skis, telling the searcher they were fine, according to Sato.
The two had not returned after going toward a peak of the ski area Sunday afternoon while skiing from that morning with two other family members—Ogawa’s wife and another son—prompting some 20 police officers to search for them from early Monday.
After deviating from a ski course and getting lost in fog Sunday afternoon, Nobuyuki and Hiroshi Ogawa passed the night without sleep in the freezing cold in a hole at the root of a large tree and were found around 7:45 a.m. by a police searcher, they said.
Although the temperature at the mountaintop was minus 13 on Sunday midnight, they were confirmed free from injury at a hospital where they were taken for checks, the police added.
Searcher Kazuo Sato, 60, found the pair standing near a stream several hundred meters from a ski course. The two then went down the mountain on skis, telling the searcher they were fine, according to Sato.
The two had not returned after going toward a peak of the ski area Sunday afternoon while skiing from that morning with two other family members—Ogawa’s wife and another son—prompting some 20 police officers to search for them from early Monday.
74-yr-old man held for killing 71-yr-old wife
TOKYO — Police have arrested a 74-year-old man on suspicion of killing his 71-year-old wife at their home in Tachikawa, Tokyo, on Saturday. Police said Sunday that they received a call at around 10 a.m. from Toshiaki Hirota, saying that he had just killed his wife.
When police arrived, they found Hirota’s wife Hisae on a bed, bleeding from stab wounds to her chest. She was taken to hospital where she died a short time later.
During police questioning, Hirota was quoted as saying: “We hadn’t been getting on for
a while. She would flare up over the tiniest thing.”
When police arrived, they found Hirota’s wife Hisae on a bed, bleeding from stab wounds to her chest. She was taken to hospital where she died a short time later.
During police questioning, Hirota was quoted as saying: “We hadn’t been getting on for
a while. She would flare up over the tiniest thing.”
2011 starts with a glitch for some iPhone users
Users who set their iPhone alarm for a single wake-up rather than recurring use found the alarm didn’t go off with the year’s arrival, Apple Inc. spokeswoman Natalie Harrison said Sunday.
A fix is in the works, and all iPhone alarms will work properly starting Monday, she said.
The glitch affects iPhones using Apple’s latest iOS 4.0 operating system, including earlier versions of the smart phone whose users have downloaded the latest software.
It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the alarm problem, or how many iPhone users were affected. Online postings on blogs and social media sites described people being late for work, church services and other appointments on Saturday and Sunday because of the problem.
The problem is the second in two months involving the iPhone’s alarm clock. The company said in early November that the end of daylight savings time could cause problems for iPhone users. In that instance, Apple said that repeating alarms set on iPhones and some versions of the iPod touch might not recognize the Nov 7 end of daylight savings time, and might work incorrectly shortly before or after the time change.
The Cupertino-based company introduced the iPhone in 2007. Apple sold 14.1 million iPhones in its fiscal fourth quarter, from July through September.
9 die after choking on rice cake over weekend
TOKYO — A 96-year-old man died Monday after a piece of ‘‘mochi’’ rice cake became stuck in his throat at his home in Tokyo, becoming the seventh person, all of whom were men, in Tokyo to die of the same cause during the first three days of the new year, rescue workers said Monday.
In Saitama Prefecture, a 66-year-old woman died Monday a day after she choked on a rice cake during a New Year’s event at a pachinko parlor in Kawaguchi and was hospitalized, police said.
In the city of Saitama, a 75-year-old man died Monday after eating a rice cake at his home, they added.
Mochi is traditionally eaten during the New Year period in Japan
In Saitama Prefecture, a 66-year-old woman died Monday a day after she choked on a rice cake during a New Year’s event at a pachinko parlor in Kawaguchi and was hospitalized, police said.
In the city of Saitama, a 75-year-old man died Monday after eating a rice cake at his home, they added.
Mochi is traditionally eaten during the New Year period in Japan
Ayumi is Now Mrs. Schwarz
To my beloved TA,
2 January 2011. 3:10pm
On the 1st of January 2011,
we registered our marriage in a small chapel in America.
Because I want everyone in TA to know about this first, I'm writing this now.
I think everyone else knows about this already, but my husband is Mannie.
He is my Last angel.
From now on, I will still continue being the person I have always been.
That's why, I wish for everyone to continue being the same too.
Let's go on at the same speed, watching the same scenery.*
(*line taken from the song NEXT LEVEL)
Source:http://www.jpopasia.com/news/5062/ayumi-hamasaki-is-now-mrsschwarz.html
Sunday, January 2, 2011
New year begins with measures to discourage consumer spending
TOKYO — The beginning of the new year marked some significant changes that economic analysts say will dampen consumer spending in Japan, most notably an eco-point subsidy cut and an end to tax breaks for certain families.
Consumer confidence in the country, already mired in the long-stagnant economy, is expected to be hit further after eligibility for the government’s eco-point program became limited on Saturday to only ‘‘five-star’’ energy-efficient home appliances.
Eco-points are now awarded for the purchase of top-tier energy-saving products designated under the country’s home appliance recycling system only for the purpose of replacing old appliances.
The latest step came a month after eco-points were cut by half due to concerns about funding shortages for the incentive program, which will expire at the end of March.
The slashing of eco-points led to a 40% drop on year in sales of flat-screen televisions at major retailers in the first half of December, according to research firm GfK Marketing Services Japan.
A number of analysts forecast sales declines of the same scale will continue although last-minute demand is expected to emerge prior to the expiration of the subsidy program.
Yusaku Yamagata, an analyst at GfK Marketing, described such a rush of buyers as a preempting of demand and said it is likely that home appliance sales will ‘‘decrease for two to three years’’ in reaction to the higher demand supported by the eco-point scheme.
Also denting consumer sentiment is the abolition this month of the dependent deduction for children up to the age of 15, adopted under the tax system reform for the current fiscal year through March to help fund child-rearing allowances.
Estimates by the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute say there will be a decrease of 76,000 yen in tax breaks or government support in 2011 from the previous year for a family of a salaried worker with an annual income of 8 million yen, a non-working spouse and a child attending an elementary school or junior high school.
Consumer confidence in the country, already mired in the long-stagnant economy, is expected to be hit further after eligibility for the government’s eco-point program became limited on Saturday to only ‘‘five-star’’ energy-efficient home appliances.
Eco-points are now awarded for the purchase of top-tier energy-saving products designated under the country’s home appliance recycling system only for the purpose of replacing old appliances.
The latest step came a month after eco-points were cut by half due to concerns about funding shortages for the incentive program, which will expire at the end of March.
The slashing of eco-points led to a 40% drop on year in sales of flat-screen televisions at major retailers in the first half of December, according to research firm GfK Marketing Services Japan.
A number of analysts forecast sales declines of the same scale will continue although last-minute demand is expected to emerge prior to the expiration of the subsidy program.
Yusaku Yamagata, an analyst at GfK Marketing, described such a rush of buyers as a preempting of demand and said it is likely that home appliance sales will ‘‘decrease for two to three years’’ in reaction to the higher demand supported by the eco-point scheme.
Also denting consumer sentiment is the abolition this month of the dependent deduction for children up to the age of 15, adopted under the tax system reform for the current fiscal year through March to help fund child-rearing allowances.
Estimates by the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute say there will be a decrease of 76,000 yen in tax breaks or government support in 2011 from the previous year for a family of a salaried worker with an annual income of 8 million yen, a non-working spouse and a child attending an elementary school or junior high school.
Ayumi Hamasaki to Marry Austrian Actor
Hamasaki, 32, and Schwarz, 30, met last August in Los Angeles when she made a promotional film for her song Virgin Road, the office said. Schwarz lives in Los Angeles. In the film, he played her bridegroom.
K-pop girl idols draw young Japanese with Net blitz, boy band boom
(Kara)
TOKYO — Thanks to the Internet and an early fascination with South Korea’s boy bands, young Japanese girls and women are shifting in droves to the latest pop idol sensation—Korean girl groups.
Rio Nagasaki, a 15-year-old junior high school student, is among a growing number of fans smitten by South Korean pop music—dubbed ‘‘K-pop’’—performed by artists of about her own age.
‘‘I learned about KARA a year ago before their debut via the Net,’’ she said, referring to the all-girl five-member group that is so far the most visible K-pop girl group in Japan.
‘‘They are very cute and dance well, and I like the fact that they are not that familiar with the Japanese language,’’ said Nagasaki after making a purchase from one of the stores selling K-pop goods in Tokyo’s Okubo district, which has become a focal point for K-pop fans.
Barely a minute’s walk from JR Shin-Okubo Station are several shops selling K-pop paraphernalia such as notebooks, mugs and accessories that shoppers flock to.
Lee Keun Hang, chief of Hanryu Hyakatten (Korean Department Store), said, ‘‘Customers have grown threefold now from last year, and almost 100% of our customers are female.’‘
‘‘Female fans in their 30s and above are already customers because of their love for South Korean dramas and boy bands, but recently I’m seeing more and more teenagers and those in their 20s coming here,’’ Lee said, noting that for avid fans visiting the Okubo district is like experiencing a ‘‘little South Korea.’‘
Masayuki Furuya, a radio DJ, journalist, and TV celebrity who is an expert on Korean pop culture, explained that the boom in K-pop girl groups stems from two factors—the captured fan base of popular South Korean boy bands and the accessibility of information via the Internet, especially the YouTube video-sharing site.
‘‘What happened was when fans of boy bands such as TVXQ and BIGBANG were searching the Internet in 2009, there was so much information about K-pop girl groups, which were becoming increasingly popular, and as they learned more about K-pop they discovered the charm of these girl groups,’’ Furuya said.
As if to illustrate his point, two women in their 20s, who were shopping for Girls’ Generation items, said they were fans of the five-member TVXQ, popularly known in Japan as Toho Shinki, and this had ‘‘extended’’ to their fascination with the nine-member Girls’ Generation.
Furuya also pointed to the crucial role of YouTube, where the artists’ official music videos or songs have been made accessible for promotion, a far cry from the situation several years ago.
Realizing the potential of this industry, the South Korean government has thrown its full support behind its K-pop artists and Korean TV drama actors, and now their celebrities and the products they endorse are well-known in China, Vietnam, and Thailand, said the Japanese trade and industry’s June report, which noted the tough competition Japan now has with South Korea in terms of capturing the Asian market for pop culture.
According to Furuya, Japanese girls are attracted to K-pop female idols as there is currently no real Japanese idol to look up to, unlike in the 1990s with the likes of pop sensation Namie Amuro, and these idols have perfect bodies, can sing and dance, and perform songs that have catchy lyrics and can be sung easily in karaoke sessions.
According to the Korea Creative Content Agency Japan Office, exports of broadcasting content from South Korea in 2009 amounted to $183.59 million, up 1.9% from 2008. The main market is Asia, with Japan accounting for more than 60% of it.
Exports of music alone, based on the agency’s latest figures, were worth $16.50 million in fiscal 2008, of which the Japanese market accounted for 68%. The agency predicts the fiscal 2009 figures will higher due to the surge of K-pop girls’ groups around that time.
Since last summer, KARA and Girls’ Generation have made forays into the Japanese market. Their singles have ranked in Japan’s Oricon music charts, their concerts were jam-packed, and they are being featured in fashion magazines and on TV. While some of the members can speak Japanese, some fans said that when it comes to performing they prefer to listen to them sing in their native tongue.
Miho Matsumoto, a 31-year-old resident of Shizuoka Prefecture, said she prefers to listen to the Girls Generation’s original version of ‘‘Gee,’’ their debut single in Japan.
‘‘Korean songs have melodies that are not in Japanese songs, and when they sing it there’s already so much emotion in it, so I prefer them singing in Korean,’’ said Matsumoto, whose love of K-pop and all things Korean has made her take up studying the language.
Cha Yu Jin, one of the managers of KoreaPlaza, which has a vast collection of original and Japanese versions of K-pop songs, said that a great percentage of the original CDs have been sold.
But whether this phenomenon will grow to embrace the whole of Japan remains is to be seen.
‘‘In terms of music sales, the K-pop girl groups and boy bands are doing well, but on the other hand their popularity is more concentrated in one area, mostly in the metropolis and big cities, and this has yet to gather steam in the rural areas,’’ Furuya said.
Takehara drawing young male anime fans
HIROSHIMA — The old scenic city of Takehara in the western Japan prefecture of Hiroshima, which had previously attracted elderly tourists to its streets lined with traditional-style buildings, is now drawing young male fans of the ‘‘anime’’ series ‘‘Tamayura’’ that is based in the city.
Anime enthusiasts can now be spotted in the town taking photos of scenes and stores from ‘‘Tamayura,’’ which portrays the life of a high school girl who loves taking photos and is directed by Junichi Sato of the ‘‘Sailor Moon’’ series.
In November, a section of a local shopping street with many empty stores was suddenly revived as around 200 people, mostly men in their 20s and 30s, gathered at an outdoor talk show featuring voice actresses from the anime series.
Koji Kurata, a 34-year-old company employee, said he had traveled by overnight bus from Sagamihara City in Kanagawa Prefecture, eastern Japan, and it was the third time he was visiting Takehara.
‘‘It’s part of the psyche of fans to want to visit the town where the story is set,’’ he said.
Residents of the town are finding ways to accommodate the fans, such as operating a ferry adorned with graphics of the anime characters and distributing commemorative tickets for the ferry ride.
‘‘We hope to promote the beauty of the town across the country through anime,’’ said Yasushi Sado, director of Network Takehara, a nonprofit group promoting the town
Anime enthusiasts can now be spotted in the town taking photos of scenes and stores from ‘‘Tamayura,’’ which portrays the life of a high school girl who loves taking photos and is directed by Junichi Sato of the ‘‘Sailor Moon’’ series.
In November, a section of a local shopping street with many empty stores was suddenly revived as around 200 people, mostly men in their 20s and 30s, gathered at an outdoor talk show featuring voice actresses from the anime series.
Koji Kurata, a 34-year-old company employee, said he had traveled by overnight bus from Sagamihara City in Kanagawa Prefecture, eastern Japan, and it was the third time he was visiting Takehara.
‘‘It’s part of the psyche of fans to want to visit the town where the story is set,’’ he said.
Residents of the town are finding ways to accommodate the fans, such as operating a ferry adorned with graphics of the anime characters and distributing commemorative tickets for the ferry ride.
‘‘We hope to promote the beauty of the town across the country through anime,’’ said Yasushi Sado, director of Network Takehara, a nonprofit group promoting the town
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