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Areas visited: Miyagino, Okada (where Habitat Friendship Truck No. 4 was dispatched), Wakabayashi (where Habitat Friendship Truck No. 1 was dispatched) and Arahama—all located in the City of Sendai
The areas were covered extensively in debris and mud which still remained in buildings that had escaped destruction. Farmlands were submerged under sea water, and soil appeared to have been soaked with gasoline and oil that had leaked out of cars. Nobody could predict how many years it would take to grow rice again.
Ohkawa in Kahoku Area in the City of Ishinomaki where Habitat Friendship Truck No. 3 was dispatched
The destruction caused by the tsunami was so devastating that there were no large buildings left that could serve as evacuation centers. People lived in small groups in private homes that were fortunate enough to escape destruction.
Ogatsu in Kahoku Area in the City of Ishinomaki
Ogatsu was completely isolated after the disaster. Consequently, no relief supplies arrived for several days during which people survived by collecting and eating rice, canned food and leftovers salvaged from refrigerators.
City of Ishinomaki
Both in the cities of Ishinomaki and Onagawa, we saw boats that had been washed ashore over a considerable distance in the streets. It will take a long time before these boats are removed.
City of Onagawa
We visited the city about a month after the disaster. However, the doors to the evacuation centers still had a number of notices asking for information on missing persons. Similar notices were seen on placards and posters in a number of places throughout the city. Work on sorting debris has just started but we felt that it would take a long time before the debris is completely disposed of.
