EMAILS FROM JAPAN

From Hiroko Imai (Narashino International Association)
March 17, 2011

I cannot possibly put my gratitude for setting Narashino Relief Fund. (Arigato Gozaimasu)

Now I know we are not alone!! We all Japanese will arouse for the resurrection of hope. I am proud of all our friends in Tuscaloosa. You all always cheer for us.

Earthquake (aftershock) hit everyday many times M3, M4 and small one. I can’t count how many times a day. It’s snow in devastated area today and tomorrow too. The surrounding prefecture of devastated area accepted to sufferers just like the Alabama University accepted sufferers by the hurricane Katarina (spell?). We Japanese help each other sending blanket, milk and diapers for babies, coat, under shirts and so on. They have less foods like one rice ball for their breakfast but they just show thanks. They never fight just show thanks. They all be line and receive foods. The number of missing and the dead is 13,000 people by this earthquake. 5 –story building was flooded on the 4^th story so the people who run into 4^th story lost their lives. Everything was beyond expectation. Especially huge Tsunami. Some says it was 7 meter high but someone says it was over 17 meters high. If no Tsunami this time more people still have their lives.

I would like to say thanks again from my deepest mind for your kindness and forever friendship.

Yours truly,
Hiroko Imai
(Narashino International Association)
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From Masato Tabata
March 18, 2001
My family and friends are al-right in safe even though they have gotten some damage by the earthquake. I don’t think they got a damage by Tsunami.

Char has some friends in the disaster area. We call locations where people in the area evacuated every night. I found phone #s on a list on local governments issue.

So far, 2 families are confirmed to be alive. We are still working on 2 more missing families. I don’t see them on either a list of death or list of evacuees. Hence, our assumption is that they might be moving to relative’s location where they are located out of disaster area privately.

It is very nice to know fund raising for the victims by the sister’s city commission. Char’s school made a donation project for the victims just past Thursday. People including students in the school know that Char and Kouta have relatives in Japan.

City of Euclid where we used to live made the same project for their sister’s city so called Naraha-Machi, where a nuclear power plant is located. Char used to live and work for the city of Naraha; therefore, she has some friends over there.

I’ve just sent my e-mail to Akio for an inquiry whether he and his family are al-right or not. Hope a good reply comes back from him.

Dearest Lisa-san and all friends in Tuscaloosa,
I have no words to show you my gratitude for our all friends in Sister Cities. I sure confirmed we are not alone but with you and you!!
These are good news:
Nine days past since the massive earthquake and Tsunami hit Japan, 16 year boy and his grandmother 86 year old were rescued. They spent
in a small space. There were water, milk, yoghurt and some cookies in a refrigerator. The boy found blanket so they could keep their (body) temperature.
When the rescues came for them the boy asked him “please save my grandmother first she is in the broken room” After that they flew by
helicopter to the hospital. They are OK.

Tsunami and Narashino City: Southern parts in Narashino faced in Tokyo Bay. Even the tsunami attacked into the Tokyo bay, the entrance of bay is very narrow but inside of Tokyo bay is wide like money bag so the power of Tsunami will separated all directions. That was why Narashino was safe this time.

Nuke-plant crisis (not good news but……)
About 1,500 people in Fukushima had been scanned for radiation exposure.

Thank you so much Lisa-san you are so kind always asking us if something we need or not. If there is something we need Narashino City willing

Yours truly,
Hiroko Imai
(Member of Narashino International Association)
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FROM FORMER EXCHANGE STUDENT
March 23, 2011

Hey Mrs. Keyes, it's Ross Green. I went on the Sister Cities exchange to Schorndorf two summers ago, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I recently read in the Crimson White about the aid that you are giving to Narashino, Japan; if there is anything I can possibly do to help you out with aid--whether it be financially or assistance--I would be more than happy to do so. I know how incredible of an experience the exchange was for me--in developing a more involved and internationally minded citizen--, and if something like this happened to Schorndorf I would be devastated. The Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission has given me an experience that I will always cherish, and with that gratitude I would love to do my part in giving back to the program, and to other communities that are involved in Sister Cities International.

Hope All is Well,
Ross
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March 24, 2011
FROM OUR SISTER CITY IN SCHORNDORF, GERMANY
Lisa,
Last night we came together for a regular meeting at City Hall. With great sympathy we commemorated the tragedy in Japan. Heidrun read some emails she got from Narashino. They seem to have a catholic church where a Madonna was damaged during the earthquake. She also mentioned that Narashino was build on land claimed from the sea which is now reconquered by the sea. More than that she could not say about the situation there. Then we came up with the idea to collect money for Narashino as this is the Japanese city which we relate to probably the most. Today Thomas Röder tried to find out how to organize things. We will have a tent with some information in Schorndorf downtown Saturday April 16th during the farmers market and will sell used books to get some money. Then we want to give you this money to add it to your disaster relief fund when you will here in June.

Liebe Grüße, Ralf
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FROM ROMMY
March 27, 2011
Dear Lisa,

Thank you for the ribbon tying ceremony.
And thank you for everything you have done for us...prayers, Fund, many warm mails which encourages us and a ribbon tying ceremony .
I feel so happy to have such a wonderful friend.

Two weeks have passed since the earthquake.
I'd like to inform what happened in Narashino and what is happening here now.

The water in half of Narashino city (including my area) is contaminated by radioactivity.
It's so dangerous just for babies that clean water offers to the families with small infants at the city office today from 10:00 to 17:00.

Yesterday I droved to see the reclaimed area in Narashino.
I found so many cracks, windings, differences in level on the road and a lot of sand blew up from the ground caused by ground liquefaction.

The damage caused by the earthquake in Narashino city is as follows....which is reported by Ms. Kakuta on Mar.18, a week a fter the earthquake .
(the numbers were not reported...under investigation.)

Most damage is concentrated in Sodegaura (where Steve lives), Akitsu, Kasumi, Akanehama and Shibazono region where were reclaimed.
1.Burst of water pipes and sewer pipes. (Some of them have not been fixed now.)
2. Flooded roads.
3.Cave-ins, cracks, bulges and fractures in the roads.
4.Outflow of sand caused by ground liquefaction.
5.Collapsed houses and half-collapsed houses.
6.Inclinations of telegraph poles.
7.stop of the electricity and water supply. (Water service is still stopped in some area.)
8.Collapsed concrete-fences.
9.A fire...A public bath and a snack bar next to the bath were burned because the chimney of the bath fell down at the earthquake.
10.Electrical wires were cut.
11.Thousands of roof tiles got broken.
12.Covers of gutters were broken.

*Three thousand of people stayed overnight at refuges (schools, etc.) in Narashino because public transportation stopped.
*Establishment of temporary toilets and water supply station.

I feel this crisis brought us a lot of assignment by God....how to live the rest of our lives....what's the true value in our lives, etc.
We have to live with the pain of the sufferers.
On the other hand I accept every thing as God's work.

I can't express how I appreciate your mail.
Sorry I'm too busy to reply soon (plus I'm a lazy writer).

Love always,
Rommy

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The Tuscaloosa News - March 28, 2011

Honoring our sister city in Japan

Bows tied in city’s cherry tree grove in support of quake-hit Narashino

y photo

Tuscaloosa resident Joseph Robinson ties a ribbon onto one of the cherry trees at Tuscaloosa’s Narashino grove Sunday with his 16-year-old daughter, Jovonda Robinson. Ribbons were tied onto 24 cherry trees to show support to Narashino, Japan, in response to the March 11 earthquake.

By Lydia Seabol Avant Staff Writer

Monday, March 28, 2011

TUSCALOOSA | A couple dozen people stood in a grove of cherry trees Sunday afternoon off Interstate 359, tying white-and-red polka dot bows around the tree trunks.

For the past 25 years, Tuscaloosa has shared a “sister city” relationship with Narashino, Japan. In 1986, the Japanese city gave the cherry trees as a gift to Tuscaloosa, so the grove was a natural place to try to show support for the city and Japan in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, said Lisa Keyes, executive director of Tuscaloosa’s Sister Cities Commission.

Members of the commission, students from the Tuscaloosa City Schools and a few Tuscaloosa city councilmen tied the ribbons, which were in the colors of the Japanese flag.

“We wanted to find a way to show a message of support to our friends in Narashino,” Keyes said.

Although Narashino did not experience the devastating damage found in areas affected by the tsunami, roadways were still damaged, power lines were down and one Narashino resident died, Keyes said.

Narashino, adjacent to the greater Tokyo area, has a population of about 158,000.

The first thought Central High School junior Jovonda Robinson had when she heard about the earthquake in Japan was Narashino and the friends she had there. Robinson was one of 12 Tuscaloosa City School students who traveled to Japan last summer as part of the bi-annual Sister City Commission exchange program.

“It’s so bad over there — I don’t know what to do,” Robinson said. “I have friends over there, and I first thought of the host families I stayed with.”

Callan Burnes, a junior at Northridge High School, also traveled to Japan.

The Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission has also set up a Narashino Disaster Assistance Fund. Donations can be made at any Cadence Bank by directing contributions to the Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission Narashino, Japan Disaster Assistance Fund. Or donate by mail at: Tuscaloosa Sister Cities Commission, Narashiono Disaster Assistance Fund, 1305 Greensboro Avenue, Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35401. All donations will be sent to Narashino to help with the disaster relief efforts.
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March 29, 2011
FROM HIROKO IMAI
Dear Lisa-san,
I'm very glad to know it was beautiful day in the ceremony. Thank you so
much for Narashino City.
I am always impressed of your idea for instance Tile Art Project for 25
SisterCities Anniversary, The Ribbon Tying Ceremony and so on. It is very
interestingto keep in touch with your culture and your idea.

It just reminds me Jovonda. She is sweet and sincere. I understand that she
wastrying to have baccalaureate(?) test. I would like to say thanks for her
fatherand Jovonda also Callan Burns.
One of citizen in Narashino I would like to show my gratitude for all
participantswho joined the Ribbon Tying Ceremony.

I understand town gas in Narashino City was recovered. Water supply is also
recovered but not some area yet. The drain is completely damaged in the seaside town
it is under construction now.

My cell phone is often inform me with uncanny noise it means earthquake is
going tohit soon. TV caster also often tell us quake will hit soon you should move
to safetyplace or to hide under a table or suitable place.
As soon as I hearing the warning I move under dining table with my cat.
We have three cats and one of them is very scare at quake and run away to
2nd floor.So I hold and shake her. So she is OK at that time. Recently lots of
Japanese feel if quake always hitting. According to TV news says some people feel always
quake hitting and vomit. If you do you would better to go to hospital or you would better to
meet doctor.Fortunately I am not to do yet. We are little nervous of quake recently.

Thank you for everything this time too.
I hope you have nice afternoon.
Very best,
Hiroko Imai
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April 1, 2011
Good morning, Byron;
Yes, TV crew reported radiation was detected on vegetables grown in Chiba.
But the detected amount of radiation was very low. It does not seem to affect
any daily living at all.
Some people are sensitive about this news. They prefer canned food
rather than salad.
So agricultural products are quite unsalable right now.
Devastated area is limited. We are OK here in Narashino.
Regards,
Akio
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FROM STEVE SAWA
April 5, 2011

Dear Lisa

Your kind information is deeply appreciated. I have distributed to other friends at NIA FS salon.

The things are moving regarding the disaster. Main Issue is now the Power Plant and the leak of radiation.

Per news, they started to flush the waste water (10000 ton) to the sea as there is no alternative on condition the level of water is low.

That’s about the worth quantity of water to fill 5-6 Olympic swimming pools. Japan made huge iron boxes connecting them to make tunnel to Haneda Airport 50 years ago.

This time more water is standing by, so maybe, they will make huge box so that they could keep in the bed of sea or any places. (This is my personal opinion)

More than 10000 persons are not yet identified while they are transforming (rotten). I think many are the whole family and no relatives to visit for identification.

I think this is horrible.

I thank and get good impression over the event you made in city. We will never, never forget your friendship and sympathy over us.

We had a meeting yesterday by the members of sister city exchange group of NIA. We discussed and exchanged over the sympathy every one knew of.

Thank you and I love you all.

with respect

Steve Sawa
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FROM NARASHINO MAYOR
April 11, 2011

Honorable Walter Maddox
Mayor
City of Tuscaloosa
Alabama, U.S.A.

Dear Mayor Maddox

Please accept our deep appreciation for sending us your warm and thoughtful message for our disaster. We are so happy that you and all our friends in Tuscaloosa are thinking of us and expressing your concern. We are really encouraged by your kindness and consideration for us.

Three weeks have passed since the massive earthquake hit Narashino and Japan; things are beginning to calm down a bit. However, there are still some areas here in Narashino without wastewater services, and those residents are thus quite inconvenienced. As you may have heard, our tap water has been contaminated with radiation due to the damage to the nuclear power plants in Fukushima prefecture caused by this earthquake. Because of the contamination, it is recommended that infants avoid drinking the tap water. The reclaimed area in Narashino was liquefied, so a great deal of mud and water spewed out of the ground. For this reason, roads are sunken in some areas. It will take us a while to before they are fully restored.

Along with this letter I will send some photos of the damage in Narashino. (Click here to see photos from the Mayor)

Again, I deeply appreciate your warm-hearted support and expression of consolation. I heard that you have established the Disaster Assistance Fund for us and you had the ribbon tying ceremony with members of Tuscaloosa youth delegation who visited here last summer and a few Tuscaloosa city councilman in the Narashino Grove; moreover our friends in Schorndorf, Germany are having a fundraising event for us. We would like to thank many friends for thinking of Narashino and Japan.

I really realized that your thoughts are with us and I am reminded of our important connection once again. I am very proud of the sister city relationship between us.
I am looking forward to seeing you there in August.

Sincerely yours,
Isamu Araki
Mayor of Narashino City
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